Core Viewpoint - Bond funds serve as a stabilizing investment tool for balancing risk and return in the financial market, with a focus on distinguishing between bond funds and bond ETFs, and categorizing the four main types of bond funds to help investors find suitable investment options [1] Group 1: Differences Between Bond Funds and Bond ETFs - Trading Method: Bond funds are traded off-exchange with net asset value settlement, while bond ETFs are traded on exchanges like stocks, allowing for real-time buying and selling [2][3] - Transparency: Bond funds disclose net asset value daily but provide detailed holdings quarterly, whereas bond ETFs track specific indices with fully disclosed components, allowing investors to monitor holdings continuously [5] - Fee Structure: Bond funds typically have management fees ranging from 0.3% to 0.8% per year, while bond ETFs generally have lower fees below 0.3% per year, making them more cost-effective for frequent traders [6] Group 2: Types of Bond Funds - Standard Bond Funds (Pure Bond Funds): These funds invest 100% in bonds, making them the least risky category [7] - Ordinary Bond Funds (Mixed Bond Funds): These funds allocate at least 80% to bonds, with the remainder in stocks or new stock subscriptions, providing a balanced risk-return profile [9] - Convertible Bond Funds: These funds primarily invest in convertible bonds, offering a hybrid investment approach that can perform well in rising markets while providing downside protection [9][10] - Short-term Pure Bond Funds: These funds hold bonds with a remaining maturity of no more than one year, offering strong liquidity and minimal interest rate risk [10] - Long-term Pure Bond Funds: These funds hold bonds with maturities over one year, presenting higher yield potential but also greater capital loss risk due to interest rate increases [10] - Level One Bond Funds: These funds participate in the stock market primarily through new stock subscriptions, with stock holdings typically not exceeding 20% [11] - Level Two Bond Funds: These funds can directly trade stocks with a 20% stock holding limit, benefiting from both bond yields and stock appreciation [11] - Index Bond Funds: These funds passively track specific bond indices, with two subcategories: passive index funds that strictly follow index components and enhanced index funds that allow for active management to seek excess returns [13] Group 3: Investment Recommendations - For extreme liquidity needs: Choose bond ETFs, especially for short-term trading or as a hedge against stock market volatility [13] - For long-term stable investments: Opt for pure bond funds or passive index bond funds due to their low fees and transparent holdings [13] - For those who can tolerate moderate risk: Consider level two bond funds or convertible bond funds for a balanced risk-return strategy [13] - For investors seeking to outperform market averages: Enhanced index bond funds may be suitable, but it is essential to evaluate the fund manager's active management capabilities [14]

Market Performance - In the first half of 2025, major A-share indices saw an overall increase, with the Shanghai Composite Index rising by 2.76% and the North Star 50 Index surging by 39.45%, reaching a historical high [1] - The market experienced structural opportunities, with themes such as DeepSeek, humanoid robots, and innovative drugs gaining significant attention from investors [1] Fund Issuance Trends - The public fund industry saw a total of 663 new funds established in the first half of 2025, a year-on-year increase of 6.25%, although the total issuance volume decreased by 20.18% to 5,267.68 million units [1] - Stock funds showed a remarkable recovery, with the number of new stock funds increasing by 67.5% and issuance volume rising by 180.2% compared to the previous year [3] - Index products, particularly ETFs and enhanced index funds, contributed significantly to the growth in stock fund issuance [3][4] Fund Types and Performance - In the first half of 2025, 483 new pure index stock funds were established, with a total issuance of 1,445.84 million units, making them the top category in terms of new fund issuance [2] - Despite the strong performance of stock funds, bond funds still led in total issuance volume, with 2,469.98 million units issued [2] - The issuance of mixed funds decreased by 22.7% in number but increased by 17.5% in volume, indicating a mixed performance across fund types [3] Innovative Products and Market Dynamics - The issuance of innovative public fund products, such as FOFs and REITs, showed significant growth, with FOFs reaching an issuance scale of 327.52 million units, over five times that of the previous year [6] - The market is witnessing a shift towards active equity funds, driven by improved performance and investor interest, particularly in technology themes [8] - Fund companies are diversifying their product offerings, focusing on broad-based ETFs, technology themes, and dividend themes to cater to varying investor needs [9][10]