Janus Henderson co-CEO: Market falls a 'not unhealthy' correction

LONDON (Reuters) - Fund manager Janus Henderson's (JHG.N) co-Chief Executive Andrew Formica said a market sell-off on fears of rising inflation was a "not unhealthy" pull-back as opposed to the start of a more sustained selloff.

Recent stock market weakness was a "correction driven by complacency" after markets had seen very little volatility in 2017, Formica told Reuters alongside fourth-quarter results.

Stock markets across Europe were lower early on Tuesday, on concerns around rising inflation.

The pan-European STOXX 600 (.STOXX) index was down for the seventh straight session and a gauge of volatility (.V2TX) up more than 35 percent.

"There was a huge consensus in terms of how people were positioned in markets and what we've seen is a change in people's assessment of risk and volatility," Formica said. "I actually don't think that's unhealthy."

Amid concerns about strong wage growth in the United States and the impact of a pronounced sell-off in fixed income, Formica pointed to strong corporate earnings growth, which supports companies.

"It's nothing that's I'm too worried about... it's a correction rather than a structural underlying issue that's been identified."

(Reporting by Simon Jessop, editing by Maiya Keidan)