US investors expected to up investment in Germany
German equities can expect an increased inflow of money from US investors this year, according to a survey by Commerzbank Corporates & Markets.
The survey, conducted among investors at Commerzbank's German Investment Seminar in New York City, reveals that four out of five expect to increase investment in the German corporate sector in 2011, with leading sector preferences recorded as capital goods, chemicals or health care and the automotive industry.
"As the driving force behind European growth, the German economy is currently an attractive prospect for global investors. The US demand for German companies is an additional boost for the DAX and strengthens our forecast of 8200 for the DAX by the end of 2011", said Markus Plümer, Head of Equity Research and Brokerage at Commerzbank Corporates & Markets, speaking at the close of the German Investment Seminar on Wednesday evening.
More than 80% of the US investors already engaged in Germany said that they were planning to increase their commitments in the German corporate sector. Of these, 48% are thinking of raising their German investments by up to 5%, and a further 41% quoted a figure of as much as 25%.
52% are aiming to invest in Germany in the first half of the year, most of them in the first quarter. The main factors given for choosing German companies is their outperformance cited by 71%. More than a third named strong growth in Germany, and over a quarter stressed the reliability of German manufacturers.
In choosing their favoured sectors, almost two-thirds of US investors would look at the capital goods industry, traditionally one of Germany’s strongholds. “Germany’s mechanical engineering and exporters can reap the most benefits from the global economic recovery, and are of special interest to the US investor,” commented Markus Plümer. More than half of the US investors also have their eye on chemicals and the health sector, 37% on the automotive industry as well, and one in four on transport and logistics. Roughly half the investors polled named market leadership of German manufacturers as the main reason for their sector preferences. 60 individual fund managers contributed to the survey.
The German Investment Seminar (GIS) is the largest conference of its kind for German corporates in the US. Held at the beginning of the year, it has been running for 13 years. This year, Commerzbank achieved record attendance with more than 500 professional investors from North America, and presentations from more than 60 listed German companies. In addition, more than 1,200 one-to-one meetings were arranged between investors and high level company representatives.
Source: Commerzbank
Date: 15.01.2011 [ID: 276]