Pension Funds’ Share of UK Stock Ownership Hits Record Low

  • Funds own a tiny proportion of UK-listed stocks versus 1990s
  • They expect more profitable returns on overseas shares: ONS

ONS data showed pension funds held 1.6% of UK-listed stocks in 2022.

Photographer: Jose Sarmento Matos/Bloomberg
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Pension funds’ share of the UK equity market has fallen to a fresh record low, partly reflecting their expectations of more profitable returns on overseas shares.

That’s the view of the Office for National Statistics, whose data showed pension funds held 1.6% of UK-listed stocks in 2022, down from 1.8% two years prior. The funds’ slice of the market has steadily declined over the past three decades, from a peak of 32% in 1992, the statistics show.