Bank of America: long "seven tech giants" once again become the world's most crowded trade

Owning big US tech stocks was again the hottest trade as investors returned to equities on the back of upbeat earnings performance and improving global economic sentiment, according to Bank of America's monthly fund managers survey. The August survey included 169 participants with $413 billion in assets under management. Of those surveyed, 45 per cent thought the most crowded trade was "going long the seven tech giants" - a mix that includes big US tech stocks such as Nvidia and Microsoft. Overall investor sentiment improved in August, with just 5 per cent of asset managers betting on a "hard landing" for the economy. A net 14% of respondents were overweight in global equities, the highest proportion since February, but still down sharply from a net 49% in December.