RJ and Makay

Investors across the globe have been favoring America lately. In November, worldwide demand for U.S. government bonds and other financial assets rose from October's levels as purchases by private investors offset record sales by foreign governments, the U.S. Treasury reports.

Indeed, net purchases of U.S. financial assets totaled more than $85 billion in November, the highest level since last August and far more than the net purchases of $28.9 billion in October. Net purchases by foreigners reached $39 billion compared with about $15 billion in October, the Treasury adds.

It looks like a great year may be on tap for the hedge fund industry, if last year is any indication. The industry saw estimated inflows of $13.0 billion in November, the fifth straight month money came in and the industry's heaviest inflow since February 2010, TrimTabs Investment Research and BarclayHedge report.

“The year ahead looks bright for the hedge fund industry,” says Sol Waksman, founder and president of BarclayHedge. “Hedge funds returned 11.6% in 2010, and investors continue to pump money into the space. We suspect pension managers will need to chase active returns because plans are underfunded and market yields are far too low to get the job done.”