Mutual Funds Weekly Roundup: November 9

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. equities were all up again for the sixth week in a row, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and NASDAQ Composite again hitting all-time highs.

• The best-performing fund so far for 2017 continues to be the Neuberger Berman Greater China Eq Instl (NCEIX).

• India stock is the best-performing mutual funds subcategory based on the rolling month.

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

U.S. Equities – U.S. equity markets all continued to gain this week for the sixth week in a row, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 0.45% to close at an all-time high of 23,539. The S&P 500 also had an increase of 0.26% for the week, closing at a new high of 2,588. The NASDAQ Composite Index was also up 0.94%, to close at a new high of 6,764. The NASDAQ is the best-performing major U.S. index on a year-to-date basis, up 25.66%.

The information technology sector was this week’s top-performing sector for the second week in a row, up 1.86%. The technology sector consists of companies like Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), which was up almost 7.5% for the week.

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International Equities – International markets were also up for the week, with the MSCI Developed Index up 0.92%, to close at 2,009, and up 22.69% on a year-to-date basis. The MSCI Emerging Index had an increase of 1.46% for the week and remains the best-performing index on a year-to-date basis, up 33.49%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 had its eighth week of gains in a row, up 2.41%, to close at 22,539.

Commodities – The commodity sector was mostly up this week except for gold. Crude oil saw a gain $1.74 per barrel and closed at $55.64 per barrel. The price of gold decreased $2 per troy ounce, to close at $1,267. Copper also saw a slight increase of $0.01, to close at $3.12.

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

Taxable Bonds – Treasury yields saw large declines this week, with the exception of the 2-year Treasury that increased 2 bps to yield 1.61%. The 10-year Treasury yield decreased 8 bps, while the 30-year Treasury yield decreased 11 bps to 2.81%.

Municipal Bonds – Municipal yields all fell across the board except for the 2-year AAA-rated bonds, which increased 3 bps to yield 1.12%. The 10-year AAA-rated bonds decreased 2 bps, while the 30-year AAA-rated bonds decreased 6 bps and now yield 2.84%. Municipal bond funds reversed its inflow trend and saw a decrease of $506 million in assets. The largest credit spread for the five-year securities decreased by 6 bps to settle at 52 bps for the week.

The following table provides a list of the top-performing mutual funds 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 November 3, 2017.

Top-performing fund: Neuberger Berman Greater China Eq Instl (NCEIX)

The fund’s largest holding is in Tencent Holdings Ltd (HKG:0700), which is up over 104% on a year-to-date basis.

Top 5 Performers

The following table provides the top-performing mutual funds on a YTD basis as of November 3, 2017. 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.