U.S. Investors Flood International Stock Funds with $150 billion in 2006
Of
the estimated $180 billion that flowed into stock funds of all types in
2006, .U.S. investors flooded international stock funds with an
estimated $150 billion, and only $30 billion went to
U.S. stock funds, the smallest since 2002, according to TrimTabs.com, (reports
USA Today).
Surging foreign stocks and a falling dollar have sent international funds flying, and investors are chasing the gains, according to TrimTabs.com.
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Of the estimated total $650 billion that U.S. savers and investors invested last year, U.S. stock funds saw just $30 billion inflow.
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U.S. investors put $206 billion into money market mutual funds through November 2006, according to the ICI. Just $16.2 billion flowed into money funds in the same period in 2005.
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In November, $11.5 billion flowed to international funds, while funds that invest mainly in the USA saw an outflow of $169 million, according to the Investment Company Institute.
U.S. investors poured about $100 billion into BRIC countries last year, TrimTabs.com's Biderman says.
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The average large-company international core fund gained 24.3% in 2006, vs. 12.4% for the average U.S. stock fund, according to Lipper.
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The German DAX index has gained 22.8% over the past 12 months, and with the falling dollar amplifying those gains, a U.S. investor in the DAX index would have gained 30.9%, according to Bloomberg.
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Stocks in the BRIC countries — Brazil, Russia, India and China — have soared over the past few years. The average fund that focuses on the Chinese stock market jumped 61.5% last year.
