Investors are pouring money into the opposite ends of the risk spectrum, with cash and high-risk emerging markets attracting record inflows while the middle ground – traditional bond and equity funds – attract little or no money.

In an unprecedented shift of money from developed world stock markets to emerging markets, US investors last year put a record $40bn into emerging markets funds – almost double the amount of last year – while they pulled net $57bn from US, Europe and Japan funds. Inflows to global equities funds, which include exposure to emerging markets, were $40bn.