Women are more likely to withstand periods of market volatility, despite being less likely to invest in the first place, according to research from Alliance Trust.

Alliance Trust’s survey discovered women endured financial storms better than men. As a result, they were less likely to sell an investment at a loss during a market downturn.

Over the last year, 12% of men sold out of an investment at a loss, compared to 6% of women.

Despite these findings, men were found to be more confident in their ability to hold their nerve amid market volatility.

Survey participants were asked what they would do if the value of their portfolio fell by 5%. The majority (69%) of men said they would stay invested, while just 61% of women said they would do the same.

Mark Atkinson, head of marketing and investor relations at Alliance Trust, said: “Holding your nerve is key; the best investment is one which is left alone for as long as possible. Patience will pay off; trust the market to outperform cash in the long run, as it always has.”

Men were found to be more involved in investing. The research revealed men were more likely to own a stocks & shares ISA, for instance, with 30% of men compared to 16% of women owning one.

The research also found 17% of men and 10% of women had a general investment account, compared to 19% and 9%, respectively, for SIPP accounts.

As well as being more likely to invest, the research concluded men tended to invest more than women. However, Alliance Trust recognised this could be due to gendered disparity in pay.

Over half (54%) of women who invest have less than £20,000 invested, whereas only 37% of men have less than £20,000 invested.

Alliance Trust’s research formed part of its ‘Impatience Tax’ campaign, which has investigated the effects of investors selling a losing share when the market dips, to later rebuy it back at a higher rate.

The campaign revealed that ‘Impatience Tax’ could have cost UK investors £1.3 billion in 12 months.

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