Investors holding steady despite uncertainty

The political and economic situation in the UK is uncertain, to say the least -- but most UK investors are opting to leave their money where it is.

In a survey of 650 adults, Aegon found that 60% are concerned about the impact of current market conditions on the performance of their investments, including their pension savings.

Despite this, however, almost seven in ten (69%) said they are not planning to take any action with their investments. Just under one in five (19%) are planning to make changes and of this figure, 14% said they are reassessing in order to diversify.

A majority of investors have held their nerve so far; the survey showed that 63% haven't reduced their exposure to equities in recent months despite a fall in the FTSE 100 and significant outflows from equities over the last quarter.

To help navigate the current uncertainty, over one in five (21%) of those surveyed said that they have or plan to seek financial advice in the next year to consider their investment options.

Commenting on the research, Nick Dixon, investment director at Aegon, said: "In recent weeks, we've seen a number of risk factors impacting global stock markets including evidence that US and China economies are slowing, Brexit uncertainty and ongoing trade wars between the US and China.

"Political and economic uncertainty has understandably created ongoing concern among investors. However what is evident is that investors are looking through the current situation to the likely longer term impacts and good financial advice can help investors avoid any panic decisions."