Future Bright for Mutual Funds

Future Bright for Mutual Funds
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In spite of certain difficulties faced by the mutual funds industry, experts who monitor it are of the opinion that its future looks strong. In a report by thestreet.com Mercer Bullard, president of the Fund Democracy, feels that mutual funds were able to handle the financial crisis better than other sectors and can be expected to expand their share in the market.

Owing to their relatively steely performance during the economic downturn and with few alternatives available, mutual funds investors continue to rely on them in today's economy. Another factor owing to the stability of mutual funds is the fact that it is a relatively mature business but is yet not an industry in decline. In addition to this, the industry can also be considered reliable since, in the United States, it was the eighties and nineties that saw new players enter the mutual funds industry leaving little space for new entrants to steal market share in today's scenario.

Top Five International Mutual Funds to Invest in Today

Top Five International Mutual Funds to Invest in Today
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Wall Street Pit has come up with a list of top international mutual funds that can help you earn and also protect against declining USD. All these mutual funds have earned the top rank on Zack Investment Research.

GMO International Bond III is one of the best earning mutual funds and it returned 15.7% on returns last year.

PIMCO Developing Local Markets A invests largely in fixed-income currency securities and only 15% of its funds are invested in high-risk securities.

Dreyfus International Bond A is emerging as one of the high-earning international mutual funds, and it yielded a return of 9.81% to its investors last year.

Columbia Emerging Markets Bond A invests a lot in emerging markets and offer s annualized return of 1056%

Lord Abbett Emerging Markets Currency A is among the highest-yielding mutual funds invested in emerging markets.

Emerging Market Investments Hurt By Inflation

Emerging Market Investments Hurt By Inflation
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Last year was a good one for emerging market investments, but those good times seem to be coming to an end as inflation is taking a bite out of emerging market growth now. The weak performance has mostly come from Asian countries, with funds invested in India being especially hard hit.

The rate of return on Indian funds has plunged this year, generating the lowest yield among emerging market funds with an average loss of 11.47 % year to date. China funds have also fizzled this year, down an average 1.45% and Brazilian equities have fared even worse with an average 4.64% decline. Inflation in these economies has led to rate hikes, which in turn are fueling outflows of capital. However, for investors following a longer-term strategy the current dips could be a good buying opportunity into the emerging market growth story which is likely still intact going forward.