The net asset values (NAVs) of 26 of the 47 bond funds appreciated by over 10 per cent in 2002-03. Another eight schemes showed gains between 8 per cent and 10 per cent, while 11 others registered returns between 3.50 per cent and 8 per cent.
The surge in NAVs followed a spurt in the prices of government securities. Bond funds invest in gilts, corporate bonds, non-convertible debentures (NCDs) among others.
PNB Debt Fund topped the gainers chart. Its NAV went up by 14.42 per cent from Rs 15.81, on April 1, 2002, to Rs 18.09 on March 31, 2003. As of February 2003, the fund had Rs 91.56 crore or 82.75 per cent of its total corpus of Rs 110.65 crore invested in government securities.
Sundaram Bond Saver was the second-biggest gainer with a 12.92 per cent rise in its NAV from Rs 17.49 to Rs 19.75 during the fiscal under review. The fund has invested 40.3 per cent (Rs 267.40 crore) of its corpus of Rs 664.15 crore in government securities.
While corporate bonds and NCDs account for 35.2 per cent (Rs 233.47 crore) of the total assets, bonds of public sector undertakings and financial institution made up for 14.11 per cent (Rs 93.70 crore).
HDFC Income Fund, which has the biggest corpus among bond funds at Rs 3,546 crore, reported a 12.73 per cent increase in its NAV from Rs 12.80 to Rs 14.43.
The fund had 8.64 per cent (or Rs 306.4 crore) of its assets invested in the gilts maturing in 2013, followed by (8.42 per cent or Rs 298.1 crore) in Reliance Industries
