Equity mutual funds' net inflow drops 76% to Rs 2,258 cr in November

The net inflow in equity mutual funds plunged 76 per cent to Rs 2,258 crore in November over the preceding month amid a sharp up move in the stock market that made investors wary of higher valuation.

This also marks the 21st straight month of inflows into equity schemes.

Overall, the mutual fund industry registered net inflows of Rs 13,263 crore in November, slightly lower from Rs 14,045 crore seen in the previous month, data released by the Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi) showed on Friday.

Apart from equity, debt-oriented mutual fund schemes witnessed a net infusion of Rs 3,668 crore during the period under review after withdrawing Rs 2,818 crore in the preceding month.

Other schemes -- index funds, gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs), other ETFs and Fund of funds investing overseas -- saw an inflow of Rs 10,394 crore. This was mainly driven by index funds, which contributed Rs 8,602 crore alone.

However, gold ETFs witnessed a net withdrawal of Rs 195 crore.

As per the data, equity mutual funds attracted Rs 2,258 crore in November, much lower than Rs 9,390 crore inflow registered in the preceding month.

Experts believe that the decline in inflows in equities funds could be attributed to the sharp surge in the stock markets that made investors wary of higher valuations.

Equity schemes have been witnessing net inflow since March 2021. Before this, these schemes had witnessed outflows for eight months from July 2020 to February 2021, losing Rs 46,791 crore.