Portfolio

In the first half of 2012, tons of cash flowed out of non-qualified annuities, according to the Depository Trust & Clearing Corp.

Bond fund sales grew at a record pace during the first half of 2012, according to Strategic Insight. Equity funds recorded net redemptions in aggregate.

Money-market fund companies obtained permission to support 155 of their funds during the financial turmoil of 2007 and 2008, and six more funds got the same go- ahead since the crisis, according to a list provided to Congress by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The Value Line Asset Allocation Fund has been added to the Schwab Mutual Fund OneSource Select List. The fund is ranked in Lipper's top 12% for the 10-year period.

About 35% of women report using a financial advisor and another 35% who don't use an advisor would consider doing so, according to a new survey from Prudential Financial.

Setting up a mutual fund in China or India may be appealing to U.S. fund companies because of the growing affluence and high savings rates in those countries. But it is a long and multi-faceted process.

The last decade has been rough for the mutual fund industry. This means boards of directors must have the tools for overseeing compliance and take on the oversight.

Morningstar has unveiled a medal count for the 106 funds covered under its new Morningstar Analyst Ratings, with five funds garnering Gold; 22 earning Silver, and 39 netting Bronze. Rounding out the rankings, 38 funds receiving Neutral ratings and two received negative.

Custom target-date strategies will hold 22% of 401(k) target-date assets by 2016, or $218 billion, according to research from Cerulli Associates. That will be a nearly four-fold increase from the 2011 asset level of $46.4 billion.

Throughout 2012, high-yield muni funds have seen some of the best total returns among bond funds, with consistent inflows. Still, some industry watchers warn of large risks for the sector.