Gold and silver exchange-traded funds in India attracted ₹33,503.36 crore in January, about 39% more than open-ended growth/equity-oriented schemes, according to the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI).
AMFI recorded ₹24,039.96 crore in gold ETF inflows that month, ₹11.37 crore more than the ₹24,028.59 crore received by the equity-oriented schemes. It said gold ETFs had their highest monthly inflow on record. AMFI’s January monthly note rounded silver ETF inflows to ₹9,463 crore; a later April note gave the figure as ₹9,463.40 crore.
In separate remarks at the ET Wealth Expo in Mumbai on Oct. 30, S Naren, executive director and chief investment officer of ICICI Prudential AMC, described asset allocation as buying after an asset class has corrected. ETMarkets.com quoted him saying, “Asset allocation is buying after a correction in an asset class.”
AMFI linked demand for gold ETFs to geopolitical uncertainty and interest in safer assets. It attributed silver ETF inflows to industrial demand, including from electric vehicles, semiconductors, telecommunications and artificial intelligence.
ETMarkets.com also reported that Naren connected gold’s place in portfolios with shifts in central banks’ reserve decisions after Russian assets held abroad were restricted. The U.S. Treasury said its 2022 action effectively immobilized Russian central-bank assets held in the United States or by U.S. persons. The Bank of Russia said sanctions limited its ability to use or manage about half of its international reserves, while it remained the owner of blocked assets; it said its gold bars were stored in Russia.
The flow figures measure money entering funds; they do not show whether ETF investors gained or lost money.
