Unit Investment Trust Data
May 2003

Washington, DC, June 27, 2003 - Unit investment trusts, investment companies that hold fixed portfolios of selected stocks or bonds, had total deposits of $911.5 million in May, according to statistics compiled by the Investment Company Institute. For comparison, deposits were $745.4 million in April 2003 and $993.9 million in May 2002.

Total Deposits by Trust Type (thousands of dollars)
		May 2003	April 2003	May 2002
Equity		662,165	522,391	789,539
Taxable Debt		80,993	90,598	59,034
Tax-Free Debt		168,335	132,454	145,341
Total		911,493	745,443	993,914

There were 55 new trusts issuing shares in May 2003. Of that total, 18 were equity trusts, 32 tax-free bond trusts, and five taxable bond trusts.

In terms of maturity, long-term bond trusts having an average weighted maturity of more than 15 years were the most commonly offered in May 2003, with $175.7 million in shareholder deposits.

Data on the market value of unit investment trusts issued and outstanding as of year-end 2002 indicate a total of 8,303 trusts with a value of $36.02 billion. According to reports of sponsors, at year-end 2002 there were 6,690 tax-free bond trusts, with a market value of $17.35 billion; 366 taxable bond trusts, with a market value of $4.02 billion; and 1,247 equity trusts, with a market value of $14.65 billion.