Welcome to the first of Fund Radar's new topical editions. Three times per year, around half of the report will be given over to a particular subject, with dedicated coverage in most chapters. In this inaugural issue, the subject in focus is responsible investment – look out for the tree symbol!

All good things must come to an end, and so it was with the past year's exceptional global stock-market growth and fund sales. The warning signs of a potential slowdown had been in evidence for some time, with many assets deemed expensive relative to historical values and fund sales in many sectors appearing irrationally exuberant as central banks turn off …

▪ February's volatility spike derails the recent boom in sales flows. The net headline intake falls to €19bn – not bad for a month of market upheaval, but still the worst result posted in more than a year.

It wasn't the end of the world, but market volatility went haywire as the second month of 2018 got underway, leading to a more turbulent fund-sales environment too. Net fund flows plummeted from January's record highs to their lowest point in over a year. They nevertheless ended February in the black at €19bn, reflecting the return to calm as the …

Stock tickers flashed red around the world at the start of February. The Dow Jones had at one point suffered its worst percentage fall since August 2011 and the experience was little better for other key bourses. A key trigger was, somewhat ironically, confirmation of inflation pressures because of faster-than-expected wage growth data in the US – good news for …

It's getting difficult to come up with new ways of describing the flood of money into Europe's fund industry, especially when the tide keeps getting higher, as in January. But the new-business pipeline is likely to have sprung a leak in February, following a bout of sharp market volatility. In any case, the composition of fund sales in 2018 looks …

Before getting too carried away, it's worth remembering that a swell in sales at the start of any given year is a fairly common occurrence – it's just that this took place at a time when underlying investor demand was already exceptional. Indeed, negative sales have been posted in January on only two occasions in FundFile history: 2008 and …

▪ Here we go again! January is typically a positive month for Europe's fund industry, but the ebullience of 2017 spills over into the beginning of 2018 too. Long-term funds welcome €87bn – a new record high.