The survey by LV= flexible retirement solutions business reveals that some 87 per cent of the respondents have little confidence in market improvement in the near future.

This comes in the wake of the Financial Services Authority’s (FSA) recent claim that that there is a “very real prospect” of conditions deteriorating amid the credit crunch.

Additionally, only 31 per cent of advisers were of the opinion that equity markets will go up and not continue to fall.

Commenting on the situation, Ray Chinn, head of pensions at LV= said: “The FSA has already hinted that there could be tough times ahead over the coming year, as the true effects of the global credit crisis strengthens. With this in mind it is not surprising that so many financial advisers believe the next few months will be unstable, and that equity markets may take a downturn.”

He added that it is crucial to remember that the role of the adviser is to build peoples’ retirement portfolios in volatile conditions as well as in times of stability.

The FSA is an independent body that regulates the financial services industry in the UK.

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