MF ASSETS REACH RECORD HIGH

The domestic mutual fund industry touched a new high in February, with a 1.45 per cent rise in assets under management, to a record of Rs 9.16 trillion on the back of inflows into income and equity-related funds, ratings agency Crisil said today. Interestingly, while liquid funds saw outflows during last month, equity funds registered inflows for fourth consecutive month. "The spurt was primarily due to inflows into income and equity-oriented funds. On the other hand, liquid funds saw outflows, which eroded higher gains for the industry assets," the rating agency said in a release. Income funds, which were the major driver of pushing growth in assets under management in February, witnessed inflows of Rs 12,900 crore, taking the assets under this category, to Rs 4.48 trillion (Rs 4.48 lakh crore). "The inflows were primarily into fixed mature plans as investors continued to invest in the closed-end funds, lured by higher interest rates offered currently," it said, adding, similarly, equity funds saw inflows for fourth consecutive month with Rs 582 crore addition in this category. "Assets rose 3.3 per cent or by Rs 5,700 crore to Rs 1.81 trillion, helped by inflows and mark-to-market gains," the rating agency said. Meanwhile, global fund of funds see inflows for the ninth straight month, posting record growth in assets under management to Rs 3,194 crore. "The category has caught investors' attention as improving prospects of developed economies and a soft rupee has shored up returns," Crisil said. Investors continued to exit gold exchange traded funds amid weak sentiment for the underlying asset class, it said. "The latest month saw outflows of Rs 178 crore compared with Rs 165 crore in the previous month," it said, adding that assets under this category witnessed a rise in assets under management due to rise in gold prices. Talking on the overall assets under management, the release said gains in total assets under management was capped by outflows from liquid funds, which saw outflows of Rs 9,629 crore in February. Similarly, the rating agency also said gilt funds saw highest outflows since September, 2013 as worries over RBI's monetary tightening continued to take a toll on gilt funds.