* Poll shows global investors raised equity exposure in Nov.
* Division over eurozone bonds
* UK, U.S, investors cut euro zone debt, others raise
By Jeremy Gaunt, European Investment Correspondent
LONDON, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Global investors increased their exposure to equities in November despite weaknesses on many bourses, while U.S. and British fund managers stepped away from crisis-hit euro zone bonds.
Surveys of 55 leading fund management houses in the United States, Japan, Britain and Europe ex UK showed a continuing desire to invest in stocks heading towards year-end.
This was despite the fact that world stocks as measured by MSCI have fallen close to 6 percent from a high early in the month.
A good part of the reason for that decline was worry about euro zone government bonds, epitomised by fears that Ireland, now the recipient of a bail out, would not be able to meet its debt obligations and that the rot would spread to others such as Portugal and Spain.
The poll showed investors were divided over euro zone debt with the so-called Anglo-Saxons, Britain and the United States, cutting their exposure sharply, but others increasing.
Eurosceptic Britain was the most negative, slicing the average exposure to euro zone debt to 7.9 percent of the bond portion of a typical mixed asset portfolio from 10.7 percent a month earlier.
"There will be more nasty surprises next year. The European banking system still has major issues and bad debts to write off," said Jeremy Beckwith, chief investment officer at wealth manager Kleinwort Benson.
By contrast, primarily euro zone European investors outside Britain increased their exposure. Some of this may have been a case of investors bringing their assets home.
The poll also does not differentiate between moves into core euro zone debt such as German and peripheral debt such as Portugal.
Overall, however, investors appeared to be keeping relatively bullish, boosted by both the U.S. Federal Reserve's asset-buying quantitative easing programme and signs of better-than-expected global economic recovery.
The managers raised equity exposure to 53.2 percent, the highest since March, from 52.7 percent on October. Bond holdings slipped to 34.2 percent from 34.6 percent and cash dropped to 4.6 percent from 5.0 percent.
REGIONALLY
U.S. fund managers increased exposure to stocks and slowly cut back on bonds for the third month in a row.
The poll of 14 U.S.-based fund management companies showed firms increased their equity holdings to an average 63 percent of their assets, up from 62.4 percent in November and 61.7 percent in September.
They trimmed their exposure to bonds to 30.2 percent from 30.4 percent in October. Cash holdings dropped to 2.8 percent from 3.3 percent. [US/ASSET]
Japanese fund managers also lifted their global stock weightings, to an 11-month high in November.
The survey showed 13 money managers raised their average weighting for global equities to 47.2 percent from 46.6 percent the previous month.
The average weighting for bonds rose slightly to 46.9 percent from 46.8 percent while the average allocation to cash fell to 3.2 percent from 3.7 percent.
The poll of 17 Europe-based asset management firms outside Britain showed a typical mixed portfolio holding 49.6 percent in equities this month, the highest since February, compared with 48.4 percent in October.
It held 37.3 percent in bonds including government and corporate debt -- which is the lowest level since January.
Cash holdings ticked higher to 6.1 percent in November from a nine-month low of 6.0 percent previously.
British fund managers bucked the global trend, cutting exposure to equities to 52.8 percent in November from 53.5 percent in October.
Bond holdings rose slightly, to 22.5 percent from 22.2 percent. But there was a large cutback in euro zone bonds.
A separate poll, not included in the global calculations, showed China-based funds cutting stocks and adding to cash.
(Additional reporting by Chris Vellacott and Natsuko Waki in London, Akiko Takeda and Chikafumi Hodo in Tokyo, Alina Selyukh in New York and Bangalore Polling Unit)