Imposition of a capital buffer could result in advisers shifting to less regulated products or to exiting the cash management business altogether, according to a new ICI study.

Market demand and supply conditions provide the most consistent explanation for recent trends in commodity prices, finds a new ICI study.

ICI’s annual compilation—our fifty-second edition—reports on retirement assets, characteristics of mutual fund owners, use of index funds, and other trends.

Investors paid on average lower expense ratios in 2011 than in 2010 for long-term mutual funds, including equity, bond, and hybrid funds, according to this ICI report on fund fees and expenses.

ICI’s annual compilation—our fifty-second edition—reports on retirement assets, characteristics of mutual fund owners, use of index funds, and other trends.

At year-end 2011, there were 634 closed-end funds. The number of closed-end funds edged up in 2011, although it is still below the peak reached in 2007.

The “typical” mutual fund–owning head of household was of moderate financial means, with $80,000 in household income and $200,000 in household financial assets.

The “typical” mutual fund–owning head of household was confident that mutual funds could help him or her reach financial goals.

ICI’s annual compilation—our fifty-second edition—reports on retirement assets, characteristics of mutual fund owners, use of index funds, and other trends.

Nine in 10 households with DC accounts agreed that these plans helped them think about the long term and made it easier for them to save.

Total U.S. retirement assets were $17.9 trillion as of December 31, 2011, up 4.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Across all income groups, retirement income from employer-sponsored retirement plans is more prevalent among retirees today than prior to the passage of ERISA.

Total money market mutual fund assets increased by $1.19 billion to $2.569 trillion for the week ended Wednesday, May 9.

Total estimated inflows to long-term mutual funds were $6.91 billion for the week ended Wednesday, May 9.

The combined assets of the nation’s mutual funds increased by $61.6 billion, or 0.5 percent, to $12.458 trillion in March.

The combined assets of the nation’s exchange-traded funds (ETFs) were $1.193 trillion in March.

Unit investment trusts, investment companies that hold fixed portfolios of selected stocks or bonds, had total deposits of $3.66 billion in April, according to statistics compiled by ICI. For comparison, deposits were $3.64 billion in March and $3.42 billion in April.

The combined assets of the nation’s closed-end funds were $238.80 billion at the end of December.

Mutual fund assets worldwide increased 2.4 percent to $23.78 trillion at the end of the fourth quarter of 2011.

Total U.S. retirement assets were $17.9 trillion as of December 31, 2011, up 4.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011.

ICI’s annual compilation—our fifty-second edition—reports on retirement assets, characteristics of mutual fund owners, use of index funds, and other trends.