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U.S. bond funds saw biggest weekly inflow in 18 months in early Jan
Published by Jessica Weisman-Pitts
Posted on January 13, 2023
2 min readLast updated: February 2, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Jessica Weisman-Pitts
Posted on January 13, 2023
2 min readLast updated: February 2, 2026
(Reuters) – U.S. bond funds attracted their biggest weekly inflow in 18 months in the seven days to Jan. 4 on signs of cooling inflation that boosted hopes the Federal Reserve might scale back the size of its interest rate hikes.
(Reuters) – U.S. bond funds attracted their biggest weekly inflow in 18 months in the seven days to Jan. 4 on signs of cooling inflation that boosted hopes the Federal Reserve might scale back the size of its interest rate hikes.
Refinitiv Lipper data showed U.S. bond funds attracted a net $10.52 billion worth of purchases, the biggest weekly inflow since late June 2021.
Data released on Thursday showed U.S. consumer prices unexpectedly fell for the first time in more than 2-1/2 years in December amid declining costs for gasoline and other goods, suggesting that inflation was now on a sustained downward trend.
U.S. taxable bond funds received $8.8 billion, the biggest weekly inflow since late June 2021, while municipal bond funds attracted a net $1.74 billion.
Investors purchased U.S. short/intermediate investment-grade funds of $3.63 billion in their most extensive weekly net buying since Jan 2022, while high-yield, general domestic taxable fixed income, and government bond funds received $2.35 billion, $1.82 billion and $927 million, respectively.
Outflows from equity funds, meanwhile, dropped to an eight-week low of $2.01 billion.
U.S. growth and value funds remained out of favour, with net selling worth about $4 billion and $757 million, respectively.
However, some sectoral funds observed buying interest, with investors purchasing industrials, financials, and materials sector funds worth net $1.13 billion, $477 million and $435 million, respectively.
Meanwhile, money market funds recorded $17.22 billion in outflows after two weeks of inflows.
(Reporting by Gaurav Dogra and Patturaja Murugaboopathy in Bengaluru; Editing by Conor Humphries)
Inflation is the rate at which the general level of prices for goods and services rises, eroding purchasing power. It is typically measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) or the Producer Price Index (PPI).
Bond funds are investment funds that primarily invest in bonds or other debt securities. They provide investors with a way to invest in a diversified portfolio of bonds, which can offer regular income and lower risk compared to stocks.
Municipal bonds are debt securities issued by states, municipalities, or counties to finance public projects. They often provide tax-exempt interest income to investors, making them attractive for those in higher tax brackets.
High-yield bonds, also known as junk bonds, are bonds that carry a higher risk of default than investment-grade bonds. They offer higher interest rates to compensate investors for the increased risk.
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