Equity MF inflow slows in Sep

According to AMFI data, equity schemes saw net inflow worth Rs 3,743 crore last month

Mutual funds (MFs) continued to witness positive inflows during September. According to AMFI data, equity schemes have witnessed net inflows worth Rs 3,743 crore in September.

However, on a month-on-month basis, there was a slowdown visible in the equity schemes. During August, net inflows received were Rs 6,103 crore - nearly double the current month inflows.

According to experts, the slowdown could be on account of the muted performance of equity markets during the month. The benchmark Sensex lost a little more than two per cent during the period. On the contrary, the Sensex had climbed 1.15 per cent during August.

According to rating agency CRISIL, the positive numbers were on account of strong mix of inflows and and mark-to-market (MTM) gains. The rating agency said equity schemes have become one of the favoured destinations for domestic investors as the category benefitted from strong positive sentiment for the asset class as seen in net inflows worth Rs 2.16 trillion since May 2014.

On the other hand, total assets under management (AUM) of MF industry touched a life-time high of Rs 15.8 lakh crore during September. Despite the price of gold going up, the gold ETFs witnessed a net outflow worth Rs 77 crore during the month. Debt schemes also witnessed an outflow worth Rs 11,024 crore in September. Liquid funds witnessed net inflows worth Rs 19,630 crore, data showed. Of the 43 fund houses that have declared average AUM, 39 of them registered an increase in average AUM.

On a y-o-y basis September 2016 is looking weaker as during the same month last year the cumulative inflows received were Rs 51,869 crore. Last financial year was the best ever in terms of inflows received by mutual funds.