Mutual Funds: Monthly SIP value hits Rs 25,000 crore mark for first time; SIP accounts 10.12 crore
Monthly inflows into mutual fund SIPs (systematic investment plans) breached the Rs 25,000 crore mark for the first time in October, data with the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) showed on Monday.
SIP contributions during the month rose to an all-time high of Rs 25,323 crore against Rs 24,509 crore in the previous month of September.
In the same month (October) a year ago, monthly SIP inflows were at Rs 16,928 crore.
“Strong flows across categories and asset classes are evident, with equity remaining positive across categories, driven by SIPs reaching an all-time high of Rs 25,000 crore,” says Anand Vardarajan, Chief Business Officer, Tata Asset Management.
Equity mutual funds see record inflows of Rs 41,887 crore in October
Equity mutual funds saw record inflows to a tune of Rs 41,887 crore in October, a surge of 21.7% on a month-on-month basis. This growth was fuelled by robust investments in thematic funds. This exemplary performance came despite the heightened volatility in the stock market.
This also marked the 44th consecutive month of net inflows in the equity-oriented funds, highlighting the ever-increasing appeal of mutual funds among investors.
“Indian mutual fund industry is at an all time high AUM of Rs 67.25 lakh crore. The month shows investors have preferred hybrid funds due to the ongoing volatility in the equity markets. We are positive on the Indian economy and India’s equity market will deliver a reasonably good return while comparing with other emerging markets,” says Hitesh Thakkar, Acting CEO, ITI Mutual Fund.
The inflow was despite heightened volatility in stock markets with Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) pulling out Rs 94,000 crore in October amid weak geopolitical sentiments. The correction in the markets however created a good investment opportunity for investors.
Overall, the mutual fund industry witnessed an inflow of Rs 2.4 lakh crore in the month under review, after an outflow of Rs 71,114 crore in September. The huge inflow was due to investments to the tune of Rs 1.57 lakh crore into debt schemes.
The inflow has lifted the industry’s net assets under management to Rs 67.26 lakh crore last month from Rs 67 lakh crore in September.
As per the data, equity-oriented schemes witnessed an inflow of Rs 41,887 crore in October, a growth of 21.7 per cent from the Rs 34,419 crore received in September. Before this, equity schemes saw an inflow of Rs 40,608 crore in June.
Within the equity schemes, sectoral thematic attracted investors with the highest net inflows of Rs 12,279 crore during the month under review. However, flow in the segment was less compared to Rs 13,255 crore in September.
Indian mutual fund industry witnessed a significant surge in inflows in the month of October with total inflows increasing by nearly 197.82% at Rs 2.39 lakh crore in October 2024, as against Rs 80,528 crore last year. Both debt and equity mutual funds registered a phenomenal surge in inflows on a year-on-year basis with debt funds registering 269.20% growth in inflows at Rs 1.57 lakh crore and equity MF witnessing 109.88% rise at Rs 41,886.69 crore during the month under review.
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“The strong surge in inflows came despite the fact that the domestic equity markets fell amid a broad-based sell-off across sectors as fears of a full-fledged war between Iran and Israel impacted investors’ risk appetite. Losses were extended as sentiment was dented following muted earnings reported by major domestic companies for the second quarter of FY25 so far,” says Ashwini Kumar, Senior Vice President and Head Market Data, ICRA Analytics.
However, the net AUM of the MF industry grew by 43.97% at Rs 67.26 lakh crore in October 2024, as against Rs 46.72 lakh crore in October 2023, Kumar said.
Among equity mutual funds, inflows into sectoral/thematic funds grew by 215.19% at Rs 12,278.78 crore. Gold ETFs also witnessed over 133% surge in inflows at Rs 1961.57 crore in October 2024 as it has been increasingly gaining popularity among investors due to liquidity, transparency and global price alignment, Kumar said.