A new survey of Canadian market professionals found that 61% of respondents plan on recommending their clients increase equity exposure in the next 12 months, says JovFunds Management Inc.

The wholly owned subsidiary of Jovian Capital Corp. said it surveyed more than 350 investment professionals, with 73% from member firms of the Investment Dealers Association and 27% from the Mutual Funds Dealers Association.

“A few of the key findings include: 53% of respondents view the recent market volatility as a buying opportunity over the next 3-6 months; 61% of respondents plan on recommending clients’ increase their equity exposure over the next one year; and investment professionals remain bullish on geographic regions such as Canada, Asia, and Europe, and plan on recommending clients increase the use of mutual funds and ETFs, among other products,” JovFunds said in a press release.

“This survey provided us with very valuable insight on investment professionals’ views on the markets – and reaffirmed that many are still bullish over the short to medium term and consider the recent volatility as a buying opportunity” said Raj Lala, managing partner.