Stocktake: Equity fund inflows in five months top past 12 years

Stocks dipped last week but the bulls remain in control. Even after the dip, notes Bespoke Investment, the S&P 500 remained almost 4 per cent above its 50-day moving average and more than 10 per cent above its 200-day average.

Bespoke’s data shows there hasn’t been a single day since last June where the index came close to testing its 200-day average.

Fund flows confirm that investors can’t get enough of stocks. According to a recent JPMorgan note, global equity funds have seen nearly $570 billion of inflows over the past five months – more than the past 12 years combined ($450 billion).

In the early stages of the rally last year, the bulk of that money was being directed towards large-cap technology stocks, fuelling concerns that this was a narrow and fragile market rally. That's certainly not the case today. Compound Capital Advisors' Charlie Bilello points out that almost everything is rising, so much so that 96.8 per cent of S&P 500 stocks were trading above their 200-day average last week – the highest percentage in history.