Mutual funds attract cash, but pace slows
* Estimated mutual fund inflows down to $11.14 billion
* Bond and hybrid funds grow while equity funds decrease
By Erin Kutz
BOSTON, June 24 (Reuters) - Long-term mutual funds saw overall buying, or inflows, for a 14th week, though inflows to stock funds slowed and the total amount hit a three-week low, according to the Investment Company Institute.
Total estimated inflows were $11.1 billion in the week to June 17, down $1.5 billion or 12 percent from $12.61 billion the prior week, the data released on Wednesday showed.
While the numbers represent a drop, inflows were still higher than a month ago. Mutual funds saw $9.72 billion in estimated inflows for the week ending May 20.
A decrease in inflows to both foreign and domestic equity mutual funds drove the decline last week. Estimated foreign equity fund inflows fell by more than 50 percent last week, from $3.02 billion on June 10 to $1.4 billion last Wednesday.
Domestic equity mutual funds experienced a less-sharp decline, falling $70 million from the week before to hit $1.96 billion. Overall, inflows to equity funds were still more than four times their May 20 levels.
Estimated inflows to both bond funds and hybrid funds, which invest in stocks and fixed income securities, increased slightly last week. Hybrid fund inflows as of June 17 grew to $690 million, from $518 million the week before.
As a whole, bond fund inflows increased by about $40 million to reach $7.09 billion last week. Inflows to taxable bond funds grew, while municipal bond funds experienced declines.
The Investment Company Institute's estimates account for data from more than 95 percent of industry assets. (Reporting by Erin Kutz. Editing by Jason Szep)
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