M&G Investments has topped the gross and net sales ranking of funds news service Lipper for this quarter, benefiting from what the latter calls a “Bond Bonanza” that’s been going on in the UK since January, sparked by attractive yields. So far this year, net sales of these funds in the first quarter have more than doubled those of the whole of 2008.

Lipper also praise M&G’s fixed income managers, backed by one of the largest teams of credit analysts in Europe, which it regards as having a particularly good track record in the field.

M&G’s Corporate Bond fund was a key contributor to the firm’s record quarterly sales. On the UK equity side, its flagship M&G recovery fund continued to gain sales too.

Invesco Perpetual won second position for gross and net sales and also received strong support for its bond funds thanks to its highly respected investment team, with its equity income funds continuing to attract a strong following at the same time.

Proving it was not only bond funds that won over investors in Q1, BlackRock came in third place for gross and net retail sales after seeing increased interest in its Gold & General fund. The move came as investors sought refuge from conventional financial assets and turned to gold as the ultimate store of value. In terms of net flows, its UK Absolute Alpha fund continues to attract steady support from investors, said the news service.

It also noted Threadneedle’s recent surge in popularity, which it attributes to its 2008 rebranding and greater sales efforts. Its Absolute Return Bond fund proved particularly attractive to investors in the first quarter, Lipper said.