HDFC Gold Fund-Direct Plan-Growth

Equity funds are schemes which concentrate their investments in shares of companies of different market capitalization

It is the suggested period for which one should invest in a mutual fund. It does not mean that the money will be locked-in for that period. While the investor can withdraw the money anytime before, it is advisable to stay invested for the suggested period to reap the best benefits (returns).

SEBI ranks all listed companies based on the overall market capitalization (total value of outstanding shares). Equity funds are schemes which concentrate their investments in shares of companies of different market capitalization. Large-cap funds invest in top 100 companies Mid-cap funds invest in companies ranking from 101 to 250 Small-cap funds invest in companies ranking from 251st onwards Multi-cap funds invest in small cap, mid cap and large cap companies

Liquid funds is a type of mutual funds which have a very short maturity period, not more than 91 days. The shorter maturity period, makes it almost a risk-free investment. Investing in mutual funds will give you higher returns as compared to a savings account which generally offer interests below 4%. At the same time, you can get your money out of liquid funds any time without any penalty or cost.

ELSS funds are tax saving mutual funds, in which majority of the funds are invested in equity schemes. ELSS has a lock-in period of 3 years. ELSS has benefits over other conventional tax saving instruments like FDs, NPS, etc. It has the lowest lock in period and the returns are higher than the other tax-saving schemes.