Money market mutual fund assets resumed their sharp climb in the latest week, rising $37.0 billion to a record $3.536 trillion. ICI's latest weekly numbers show retail assets increasing by $1.58 billion to $1.269 trillion, and institutional assets increasing $35.42 billion to $2.267 trillion. Assets normally jump at the start of the new quarter as dividend and bond coupon payments hit cash accounts, but assets should decline the week following the April 15 tax payment deadline.
This year, money fund assets have the added fuel of a huge flight-to-safety, plus interest-rate sensitive securities lending and financial institution cash pouring in. YTD, assets have increased by $391.9 billion, or 12.5%, and over 52 weeks assets have increased by $1.071 trillion, or 43.4%.
Institutional flows were heavily tilted towards General Purpose, or "Prime", money funds; assets here grew by $30.1 billion in the latest week to $1.328 trillion. Government institutional funds saw $4.0 billion (to $749 billion) and tax-exempt money funds saw $1.26 billion (to $189.8 billion).
Yields on money funds fell in the latest week. Our Crane 100 Money Fund Index declined by 0.12% to 2.66% (7-day yield as of April 9), and our broader Crane Money Fund Average declined by 9 bps to 2.48%. Tax-exempt money fund yields, as measured by our daily Crane Tax Exempt MF Index, fell by 26 basis points to 1.72%.
