Systematic investment plans (SIP) stayed stable even as total flows to growth-oriented funds shrank 14%, to ₹35,943 crore, from October’s ₹41,887 crore.
Monthly net subscriptions to thematic funds fell to this fiscal year’s second-lowest level, at ₹7,658 crore. This marks the lowest inflows into the category since April. Net inflows into the category, which peaked at ₹22,352 crore in June, never declined below ₹12,000 crore between May and October, on multiple new fund offerings by the industry.
SIP purchases stayed stable at ₹25,320 crore, underscoring the ability of the Indian capital markets to generate wealth for the disciplined investor.
AgenciesDebt funds, too, saw inflows of ₹12,916 crore, largely on account of inflows into low-duration and money-market funds. A fall in allocation to stocks through the volatile month saw total average assets under management (AUM) fall marginally to ₹68.04 lakh crore, compared with ₹68.5 lakh crore in October.
“In the past 20 months of consecutive sequential growth in total AUM for the Industry, this is only for the second time where the AUM has dropped sequentially,” said Viraj Gandhi, MD, Samco Mutual Fund. Within equities, all categories got flows from investors. Flexicap funds got the highest inflows of ₹5,084 crore, followed by midcap funds that attracted ₹4,883 crore and small caps ₹4,112 crore. Large cap funds attracted ₹2,548 crore, while multicap funds, which invest in a mix of large, mid and small-cap funds, saw inflows of ₹3,626 crore.Liquid funds saw outflows of ₹1,889 crore, while low-duration funds saw inflows of ₹4,374 crore, and money market funds saw inflows of ₹2,426 crore.
“The growth in debt funds’ net inflows was at the shorter end of the curve as over 90% of the inflows were in the overnight, ultra short duration, low duration and money market funds,” said Sanjay Agarwal, senior director, CareEdge Ratings.
In the hybrid space, arbitrage funds, a product category investors have been using to park idle money and earn more than bank savings, lost ₹1,353 crore, compared with inflows of ₹7,182 crore in the previous month. Some savers moved money to equity funds, taking advantage of the steep correction through October.
Multi-asset allocation funds, which invest in a mix of debt, equity and gold, saw inflows of Rs 2,444 crore. Balanced advantage funds saw inflows of Rs 1,570 crore and equity savings funds saw inflows of Rs 586 crore.