Sundaram Mutual Rural India fund nationally launched

Chennai, Mar 20 (UNI) Sundaram Mutual, which has over Rs 3,162 crore as assets under management, today announced the national launch of Sundaram Rural India fund, the country's first fund focusing on the 'most promising growth' opportunity.

Addressing a press conference here, Sundaram Mutual Managing Director T P Raman said the expanse of rural India offered the most promising investment opportunities.

The fund was aimed at capturing the rural transformation process, he said, adding growth rate of household earnings in the Rs 90,000 to Rs two lakh annual income bracket showed that rural growth had risen from 5.7 per cent in 1995 to 2002 and was expected to be 11 per cent in the period 2002 to 2010.

Sundaram Rural India Fund would invest 70 per cent to 100 per cent of its assets in companies focusing in rural India, while upto 30 per could be invested in stocks of other companies. The fund would invest upto 15 per cent of assets in money market and related instruments.

Stating that it was not a sector fund or an agriculture focused fund, Sundaram Mutual Retail Distribution Vice-President Sunil Subramaniam said ten per cent of incremental revenue of companies coming from rural opportunities was the basis of the fund. 'The particular revenue generating stream is what we want to capture.' The open-ended equity fund would close on April 19.

UNI HV AA 1734 ]