Investor economic confidence jumps in Aug.: survey (by Preeti Upadhyaya)

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Investor confidence in the global economic outlook in August saw its sharpest rise since the spring of 2009, according to the monthly Bank of America Merrill Lynch survey of fund managers released Tuesday. The report, which polled 173 fund managers, found that a net 15% of those surveyed believe the global economy will strengthen in the next year. In July, a net 13% of those surveyed said the economy would weaken. The report cites "growing expectations of intervention by the European Central Bank" for the optimistic outlook and says that investors are becoming far less bearish on the euro zone. The report also found that more investors want to underweight U.S. equities than euro-zone equities. Gary Banker, head of European equities strategy at Bank of America Merrill Lynch Global Research, said: "August's surge in confidence seems to be more a triumph of policy projection and potential than positive economic data."