The Markets January 29, 2008

Domestic Equity Funds Take In $47B in December

Stock and bond mutual funds experienced net inflows of $47.2 billion in December and $376.3 billion for the year, according to data from the Financial Research Corporation (FRC).
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Domestic Equity offerings led the way with $29.1 billion in December inflows ($74.4 billion year to date), the FRC data showed.

International/Global funds followed Domestic Equity offerings with a $17.1 billion December advance ($208.6 billion year to date). Government funds had a $2.4 billion inflow ($6 billion year to date), while corporate funds had a $2.1 billion December asset increase ($79.8 billion year to date). Tax-Free Bond funds were hit with a $3.6 billion asset drain ($7.2 billion year to date).

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By Morningstar category, Large Blend was the winner in December with $25 billion in inflows ($63.2 billion year to date), followed by Large Growth at $5.1 billion ($1.6 billion year to date), and Intermediate Term Bond at $4.9 billion ($69.8 billion year to date).

State Street Global Advisors topped all funds families in December with $26.1 billion of net inflows ($49.2 billion year to date), while Barclays Global Investors came in second with $8.4 billion ($58.1 billion year to date), and American Funds posted $7.1 billion in net inflows ($74.6 billion year to date).

State Street Global Advisors’ SPDR Trust collected $21.6 billion to lead the December fund sales charts. iShares MSCI EAFE Idx was second at $3.4 billion.

Data & Research January 29, 2008

Money Brings Peace of Mind, But Worries Too

High net worth individuals are primarily concerned about the safety of their family, but they also have significant concerns about the protection of financial assets such as stocks, bonds, real estate, and other investments.
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Those with $2-$5 million in investible assets and the “newly affluent’ – individuals who achieved their wealth in the last five years – are the most concerned, according to a recent survey of Americans with investment assets in excess of $1 million commissioned by Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company and conducted by Opinion Research Corporation (ORC).

Although most Americans with upwards of $125,000 in discretionary income believe money has brought them considerable security and peace of mind, they don’t “really feel like they have a lot of money,’ and agree with the sentiment that having been “burned in business experiences has made me much more cautious,’ according to the 2007 Annual Survey of Affluence and Wealth in America, produced by American Express Publishing and Harrison Group.

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When asked if they worry that someday they could run out of money, 49% of those who have been affluent for less than six years and 52% with $125K-$249K in disposable income indicated concerns about financial security in the American Express poll.

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