MutualFunds.com provides weekly information about any material impact on the mutual funds industry due to major economic and corporate events around the world. In addition, performance statistics on the top funds and fund categories are also provided.

• U.S. and international equities and commodities were mostly down this week.

• The best-performing fund for 2018 on a year-to-date basis is Leland Thomson Reuters Venture Capital Index Fund (LDVIX).

• China Equities is the best-performing mutual funds subcategory based on rolling-month returns.

• Make sure to check out the previous edition of the Weekly Roundup to keep track of changing trends in the mutual funds industry.

U.S. Equities – U.S. equity markets were all down this week, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down by 0.47% to close at 24,715, which is now down 0.02% on a year-to-date basis. The S&P 500 also fell 0.54% for the week to close at 2,713, which is up 1.47% year-to-date. The NASDAQ Composite decreased 0.66% to close at 7,354. NASDAQ is still the best-performing index among major indices on a year-to-date basis and is up 6.53%.

The best-performing sector was energy, up 1.73% for the week, and remains the second best-performing sector on a year-to-date basis, up 8.98%. This sector consists of companies like Exxon Mobil Corp (NYSE:XOM), which was up 0.55% for the week.

International Equities – The international markets were also up this week, with the exception of the Nikkei 225. The MSCI Developed Market Index is down 0.45% to close at 2,047. The MSCI Emerging Market Index fell 2.25% to close at 1,138. Finally, Japan’s Nikkei 225 was the only major foreign equity market that increased this week, gaining 0.76%, to close at 22,930.

Commodities – The commodities markets were all down this week, with the exception of crude oil that gained $0.58 per barrel to close at $71.28. The price of gold decreased by $29 per troy ounce to close at $1,290. Copper prices also decreased by $0.05 to close at $3.06.

Be sure to read important tips on how to invest in the right commodity-based mutual fund.

Taxable Bonds – Treasury yields were up this week, with the 2-year Treasury increasing by 2 bps to now yield 2.55%. The 10-year Treasury yield saw this week’s largest gain of 18 bps and now yields 3.06%. The 30-year Treasury increased 7 bps to yield 3.20%.

Municipal Bonds – Municipal yields were all up this week, with the 2-year AAA-rated bonds increasing by 1 bps to yield 1.86%. The 10-year AAA-rated bonds saw an increase of 10 bps, while the 30-year AAA-rated bonds also increased by 10 bps, to now yield 3.13%. Municipal bond funds saw its second week of inflows, with an increase of $318 million in assets under management. The largest credit spread for the five-year securities increased to 76 bps for the week.

Explore our Mutual Fund Education section to learn more about important mutual fund concepts.

The following table provides a list of the top-performing mutual fund subcategories for the previous week within the broader categories of the industry. In each of these subcategories, we have listed the top mutual funds based on the one-month return generated as of May 18, 2018.

Top-performing fund: Leland Thomson Reuters Venture Capital Index Fund (LDVIX)

One of the fund’s largest holdings is Adobe Systems Inc (NASDAQ:ADBE), which is up over 35% on a year-to-date basis.

Top Five Performers

The following table provides the top-performing mutual funds on a YTD basis as of May 18, 2018. Only those funds that are rated five stars by Morningstar and that generated YTD returns greater than or equal to that achieved by the S&P 500 are included.

We provide this report on a weekly basis. To stay up to date with mutual fund market events, return to our News section.