Bond and equity fund correlations have trended up this century   Increasing equity-bond correlations over decades poses questions for traditional portfolio construction. The perceived low correlation between equity and bond returns is the basis of the construction of the “balanced” portfolio. The split between equities and bonds provides diversification benefits that should lead to better risk-adjusted returns over the longer term. Indeed, multi-asset sales (particularly those with a stronger equity tilt) have proven popular over the past three years, despite ongoing volatility and swings in market leadership. A recent study by FTSE Russell has noted that for most of the