EUROPE - Merrill Lynch Investment Managers had a net inflow of $12bn in assets under management in the third quarter – boosted in part by European institutional strength.

“Net inflows for the quarter were $12bn, the highest net inflows in 19 quarters, with particular strength in the Americas institutional, European institutional and European third-party retail channels,” parent Merrill Lynch said in its latest earnings report.

“Additionally, MLIM's acquisition of the Philips pension business added $18bn of assets under management.” Philips announced in April that it would outsource the management of its Dutch pension assets to MLIM.

MLIM’s total assets under management rose to $524bn, up 10% from a year before.

MLIM’s pre-tax earnings for the quarter rose 46% to $162m. Revenues rose 22% to $456m. This was “driven principally by higher average long-term asset values, as well as an improvement in the fee profile of assets under management”.

“MLIM produced strong pre-tax earnings and record margins on revenue growth resulting from favorable market conditions and improving net flows,” Merrill said. “MLIM continued to focus on broadening the distribution of its products and maintaining operating discipline during the third quarter.”

Overall, Merrill’s net earnings rose 49% to $1.4bn, while revenues were up 38% at $6.7bn.