New Delhi, May 11 -- Equity-oriented mutual fund schemes recorded net inflows of Rs 38,440 crore in April, a decline of 5 per cent from Rs 40,450 crore in March, amid geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and fluctuating crude oil prices, according to data released by Association of Mutual Funds in India on Monday.

Monthly SIP contributions also declined to Rs 31,115 crore in April from Rs 32,087 crore in March.

Despite the moderation, equity inflows remained higher than the Rs 25,978 crore recorded in February and marked the 62nd consecutive month of positive flows.

Overall, the mutual fund industry witnessed a net infusion of Rs 3.22 lakh crore in April after an outflow of Rs 2.4 lakh crore in March, supported by a sharp rebound in debt-oriented schemes that attracted Rs 2.5 lakh crore. In March, debt funds had seen an outflow of Rs 2.95 lakh crore.

The industry's assets under management rose 11 per cent to Rs 81.92 lakh crore at the end of April from Rs 73.73 lakh crore in March.

Venkat Chalasani, Chief Executive of Amfi, said the growth in assets was driven by "strong positive flows across segments and market to market gains witnessed during the month".

Within the equity category, Flexi Cap funds led inflows with Rs 10,148 crore. Small-cap funds attracted Rs 6,885 crore, while mid-cap funds received Rs 6,551 crore.

Large-cap funds registered inflows of Rs 2,525 crore.

However, Dividend Yield and Equity Linked Savings Scheme (ELSS) funds saw marginal outflows due to profit booking and portfolio rebalancing.

Debt-oriented schemes saw strong inflows into liquid, overnight and short-duration funds. Liquid funds led the recovery with inflows of Rs 165,105 crore, followed by overnight funds at Rs 31,420 crore and money market funds at Rs 20,643 crore.

"This reflects the typical post year-end redeployment of liquidity after March outflows," Umesh Sharma, CIO- Debt at The Wealth Company said.

However, long-duration and gilt categories continued to see outflows, indicating persistent caution on interest rate risk, while corporate bond funds recovered with moderate inflows, he added.

"Against the backdrop of a challenging global environment, Indian mutual fund investors have shown commendable resilience. Equity flows have held up well, reflecting the growing maturity of our investor base and the deepening awareness about the merits of systematic investing. While markets will always have to contend with geopolitical developments, the data suggests that long-term financial goals are increasingly guiding investment decisions over short-term noise," Navneet Munot, MD & CEO of HDFC AMC said.

Gold exchange-traded funds recorded inflows of Rs 3,040 crore in April compared with Rs 2,266 crore in March.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.