Bank of America fund manager investigation: Going long on global semiconductors is one of the most crowded trades in history

BlockBeats news, July 17: Bank of America’s global fund manager survey for July shows investors’ attitudes toward AI semiconductor trades are conflicted. Most people still have not bet on the end of the cycle, but more and more people believe the trade is already overcrowded.

The survey shows that 82% of the fund managers surveyed believe that “going long on global semiconductors” is the most crowded trade globally, setting a record. Meanwhile, tech stock allocation narrowed from a net 26% overweight to a net 18% overweight, indicating investors are trimming some long positions, but have not really turned to shorting. The survey also shows that 61% of investors do not expect hyperscalers to announce reduced capital expenditure this year.

The BofA survey also points out that the AI bubble is one of the biggest tail risks, with the share of respondents rising from 28% in June to 45% in July. However, only some investors believe AI stocks have already entered the bubble stage; more people still view them as a “boom phase,” meaning momentum is still attracting inflows, but position and valuation risks are rising.

The survey was conducted from July 2 to July 9, covering 210 fund managers with total assets under management of about $555B.