Clients pull £800m from Aberdeen

Aberdeen Asset Management said its clients had pulled £800m of cash from its investment funds in the past two months as they retreat from a range of assets such as shares and bonds.

The mass withdrawal contributed to an £8.9bn decline in the value of assets Aberdeen manages to £176.9bn over the period, a 4.8 per cent drop.

Martin Gilbert, Aberdeen's chief executive, indicated that the group may see further declines in assets under management in the coming months.

"There is no easy resolution to Europe's sovereign debt problems and the expectation is for anaemic economic growth in the West for some time," Mr Gilbert said.