Where did the smart money go in May?

May began with global equity markets hitting new high after new high, but in the latter part of the month risk aversion kicked in and markets started to slide. This was reflected in investor appetite. The first half of the month was all about racy, high beta areas such as emerging markets and Japan but, by the end of the month, investors were hunkering down and rejecting risk assets in a familiar pattern. Data from EPFR Global showed that, globally, flows into Japan funds in the second week of May pushed equity fund sales substantially higher. They outsold bond portfolios by four to o...