Morgan Stanley Investment Management announced a dramatic drop in revenues and profits for 2011 this morning, as modest growth in its traditional asset management business was outweighed by valuation slumps at its private equity and real estate arms.

The bank emphasised net inflows into its funds of $25.8bn during 2011, comparing well with net withdrawals of $5.7bn during 2010. The trend was continued into the last three months of last year, with $14.5bn of net inflows during this period, mostly in alternatives, where it pulled in $7.9bn.