Data from research firm Morningstar showed that European investors pulled out of equity funds and put €16.95 billion (around $21.8 billion) into bond funds last month, while US savers moved in a similar direction.

In the US, net inflows to bond funds surpassed $30 billion in August, Morningstar said in its monthly snapshot of trends in the industry.

August’s European inflows remained well below July’s record level of €22.9 billion; the run on bond funds abated just slightly compared with previous months’ flows into European fixed-income products, the report said.

The figures are particularly striking considering that bond funds are relatively unattractive in return terms at a time when interest rates are low, or in some cases negative, in real terms. The data may be suggestive of considerable investor reluctance to take risk. Ironically, other fund surveys from the likes of Bank of America Merrill Lynch suggest that investors may be turning more positive about equities.

Among other findings from the Morningstar report were that long-term funds took in nearly €11.72 billion in August, bringing their year-to-date total to €90 billion; equity funds saw net outflows of €7.02 billion; funds in Morningstar’s US large-cap blend equity category suffered most, shedding a net €810 million.

A handful of equity categories saw inflows in August; US Equity – Currency Hedged saw the highest investor demand, posting net inflows of €324 million. Alternative funds gained momentum, with €713 million in net inflows.