Portfolio

U.S. exchange-traded fund assets rose $2.49 billion to $1.408 trillion in February, according to Investment Company Institute.

Are mutual fund wholesalers and advisors under-stressed and overpaid? Well, the folks at U.S. News & World Report seem to think so.

Tax-exempt money market funds reversed a recent spate of outflows -- yet gained just a scant $24.2 million -- as total net assets barely inched up to $276.65 billion in the week ended March 18, according to The Money Fund Report, a service of iMoneyNet.com.

Investors were down on the municipal bond market for a third straight week as $261 million poured out of weekly reporting muni bond mutual funds for the week of March 20.

Are mutual fund wholesalers and advisors under-stressed and overpaid?

For the visually inclined, we've created an infographic to highlight some of the major shifts under way in demographics, technology and global wealth.

U.S. exchange-traded fund assets rose $2.49 billion to $1.408 trillion in February, according to Investment Company Institute.

Plan sponsors are increasingly turning to outsourced or discretionary investment solutions for their funds post the global financial crisis, according to Tim Barron, chief investment officer for consulting firm Segal Rogerscasey.

With a new survey by Legg Mason showing that U.S. investors have high hopes that equities have a bright outlook, skeptics say advisors must be cautious.

“Interest rates are having a large impact on overall annuity sales,” says Catherine Theroux, director of Public Relations at LIMRA. “For fixed annuities, people are less inclined to lock in rates at this level.”