Gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) witnessed a sharp rise in investor interest in September, with net inflows surging 71.4 per cent month-on-month to INR 4,451 crore from INR 2,597 crore in August, according to data released by the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) on Monday
NEW DELHI — Gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) witnessed a sharp rise in investor interest in September, with net inflows surging 71.4 per cent month-on-month to INR 4,451 crore from INR 2,597 crore in August, according to data released by the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) on Monday.
The strong inflows into gold ETFs came despite the broader mutual fund industry witnessing net outflows of INR 1.33 lakh crore during the month, reversing net inflows of INR 41,353 crore recorded in August. The decline was largely driven by significant withdrawals from fixed-income mutual fund schemes.
Debt-oriented mutual funds emerged as the biggest source of outflows, with net withdrawals rising sharply to INR 1.83 lakh crore in September compared to INR 8,127 crore in the preceding month.
The heavy redemptions weighed on the industry’s overall assets under management (AUM), which fell to INR 82.64 lakh crore from INR 87.08 lakh crore in August.
In contrast, equity mutual funds maintained their growth momentum and continued to attract investor money. Net inflows into equity schemes increased 30.6 per cent to INR 38,307 crore in September, up from INR 29,328 crore in August.
Among equity categories, small-cap funds remained the most preferred segment, garnering inflows of Rs 9,039 crore against INR 7,973 crore in the previous month. Mid-cap funds also saw healthy investor participation, attracting INR 7,835 crore compared with Rs 6,989 crore in August.
Flexi-cap funds recorded net inflows of INR 6,702 crore, rising from INR 5,059 crore a month earlier, while sectoral and thematic funds witnessed inflows increase to INR 3,640 crore from INR 1,713 crore.
Large-cap funds returned to positive territory after a month of outflows, receiving net investments of Rs 859 crore in September, compared with net outflows of INR 1,147 crore in August.
Meanwhile, multi-asset allocation funds attracted INR 3,667 crore, largely unchanged from Rs 3,671 crore in the previous month.
Investor participation through systematic investment plans (SIPs) remained robust, with monthly SIP contributions touching a record high of INR 32,490 crore in September, marginally higher than Rs 32,297 crore recorded in August.