What’s Top of Mind for Advisors?

It’s not the political climate nor the Labor Department’s fiduciary regulation, according to a new survey. No, financial advisors were most concerned about market volatility in Q1 2016, according to the latest Fidelity Advisor Investment Pulse study. About 3-in-10 advisors cited it as an area of focus, up from 19% in the previous quarter. Not that the election and the Labor Department’s fiduciary regulation weren’t a concern; those came in #3 in the first quarter. What fell in between those two? Portfolio management was also a top-of-mind-theme for advisors, taking the No. 2 spot. On the other hand, concerns about interest rates fell significantly, tumbling from No. 2 a quarter ago to the No. 7 spot in Q1 2016. While approximately one out of every five advisors surveyed in the previous quarter cited interest rates as a concern, the number dropped to fewer than 1 in 10 in the first quarter of this year – particularly interesting in that interest rates had consistently been one of the top five topics for advisors every quarter for more than two years. The Fidelity Advisor Investment Pulse is a survey that captures the investment topics on the minds of around 250 advisors.