Equity MF witnessing net inflows for first time in 8 months

S&P BSE Sensex in March 2021 gave 0.83 per cent returns, whereas S&P BSE 500 gave 1.19 per cent returns. It was S&P BSE IT index that outshined other indices by providing 8.68 per cent returns in March 2021. This was followed by S&P BSE Basic Materials index, S&P BSE FMCG index, and S&P BSE Teck index, which gave returns of 8.32 per cent, 7.59 per cent, and 6.12 per cent, respectively.  

Speaking about the total assets under management (AUM) of the mutual fund industry, it witnessed a 0.67 per cent fall on a month-on-month (MoM) basis and a 41.17 per cent surge on a year-on-year (YoY) basis as of March 2021. 

On an MoM basis, equity mutual funds saw a 1.66 per cent rise in the AUM, whereas debt mutual funds witnessed a 3.36 per cent fall in the AUM. However, looking at it on a YoY basis, both equity and debt mutual funds saw a 69.29 per cent and 29.06 per cent surge in the AUM, respectively. 

Having said, for the past eight consecutive months, equity mutual funds witnessed outflows. This can be well-attributed to investors redeeming and switching from mutual funds to direct stocks. This was also the reason why domestic institutional investors (DII) were net sellers. However, it is for the first time in eight months that equity mutual funds have witnessed inflows.

If we look at the net inflows of individual equity mutual fund categories, then it was the multi-cap fund with inflows of Rs 2,268 crore in March 2021 that contributed the highest to the inflows of equity MFs. This was followed by a large-cap fund, a focussed fund, and an equity-linked saving scheme (ELSS). Among all the equity fund categories, only the dividend yield fund witnessed an outflow of Rs 29 crore. 

As of March 2021, mutual fund systematic investment plan (SIP) accounts stood at 3.73 crore. On the other hand, the total amount collected via SIP during March 2021 was Rs 9,182 crore. Clearly, we can see that there is a rise in the amount collected via SIP. 

As we can see, in the month of March 2021, the SIP contribution is at its all-time high of Rs 9,182 crore. These numbers are quite encouraging as we have seen such a rise after almost a year.