US money market assets rise five straight weeks

NEW YORK: US money market fund assets rose for a fifth consecutive week, bringing its total to more than a nine-year high as investors pour cash into low-risk funds on concerns about escalating US-China trade tensions, a private report released on Wednesday showed.

US money fund assets increased by $17.26 billion to $3.110 trillion in the week ended May 28, the Money Fund Report said.

During this five-week span, total fund assets increased by $101 billion.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday he was not yet ready to make a deal with Beijing.

On Wednesday, a Chinese Communist Party newspaper warned the United States that Beijing was ready to use rare earths - used in high-tech consumer electronics and military equipment - to retaliate on trade.

Taxable money market fund assets increased by $18.95 billion to $2.972 trillion, while tax-free assets decreased by $1.69 billion to $137.58 billion, according to the report, published by iMoneyNet.

The iMoneyNet average seven-day simple yield for taxable money funds slipped to a five-month low at 2.02%. The weighted average maturity among taxable funds shortened to 29 days from 30 days.

The iMoneyNet average seven-day yield for tax-free and municipal funds held at 0.99%, the lowest since late January. The weighted average maturity of tax-free funds remained at 22 days.