Four in five advisers (80%) have reported clients making changes to their investment strategies in response to the US tariffs announced in April, according to a new report.

Over nine in ten (92%) of the 300 advisers surveyed by mutual Wesleyan said clients were also primed to make further changes to their investment strategies if global market volatility persists during the remainder of this year.

Over half of advisers had contacted clients about market volatility since April. Three in five (57%) had contacted their entire client base and over a third (37%) had reached out to a specific client segment to discuss market volatility concerns.

James Tothill, investment specialist at Wesleyan, said they have seen an increased used of smoothed funds to address some of the spikes causing clients worries.

He said that clients were clearly worried about what might yet happen.

He said: “Great Financial Planning about delivering peace of mind alongside good outcomes. In this environment, advisers might find themselves spending more and more time helping clients avoid making emotionally-led decisions to ensure plans keep delivering good outcomes. This could involve looking at ways to address volatility, rather than knee-jerk changes in the underlying assets themselves.”

The Bank of England has warned that the disruption and uncertainty caused by the proposed US trade tariffs could limit growth in the latter part of this year.

Earlier this month US President Trump warned that he plans to begin introducing his new tariffs from 1 August. His administration has proposed tariff conditions on 24 countries and the European Union.

• Censuswide surveyed 300 UK financial advisers on behalf of Wesleyan between 7 and 14 May.