The Investment Funds Institute of Canada (IFIC) published its exchange traded fund (ETF) and mutual fund sales and net asset figures for March 2022. The report, released on April 22, shows that mutual fund sales declined dramatically in March month-over-month and year-over-year, but net asset figures still pulled ahead of February 2022 and March 2021 net asset numbers.

In ETFs, net sales were significantly closer to past month and year ago sales figures.

In mutual funds, net sales were just $922-million in March 2022, compared to almost $9.9-billion recorded in February 2022 and more than $13-billion in March 2021. Assets, however, still increased by $4.1-billion or 0.2 per cent to more than $2-trillion at the end of March 2022. This is up from just under $2-trillion in February this year, and up from $1.8-trillion at the end of March 2021.

Year-to-date, mutual fund sales reached $18-billion by the end of March 2022, down considerably from the $42-billion in net sales reported year-to-date during the same period in 2021.

ETF sales meanwhile were up to almost $4.6-billion in March 2022. This is up from $4-billion in February, but down slightly from $4.7-billion sold in March 2021. Year-to-date sales reached $13.2-billion at the end of March, down from almost $14.5-billion in sales reported year-to-date at the end of March 2021. Net assets were up $7.5-billion or 2.4 per cent to $324.7-billion in March 2022. This is up from $317.1-billion in February 2022 and $277.9-billion in March 2021.