By Simon Jessop

LONDON, May 21 (Reuters) - Global sustainable investment funds attracted a net $3.5 billion in new money in the first quarter, though U.S. funds chalked up their 14th straight quarter of outflows, data from industry tracker Morningstar showed on Thursday.

• Marks a return to positive global inflows after outflows of $27 billion in the fourth quarter of 2025.

• Driven by Europe, with $9.1 billion in inflows – the first positive quarter since the third quarter of 2024.

• U.S. sustainable funds registered outflows of $4.3 billion.

• Total global assets down 10% at $3.51 trillion, driven primarily by market volatility.

• Total of 17 new sustainable funds were launched globally, down from 50 in the previous quarter.

• “The return to modest inflows in the first quarter suggests that investor appetite for sustainable strategies has not disappeared, but it remains fragile and highly region-specific," said Morningstar's Kenneth Lamont.