March 27 (Reuters) - U.S. equity funds drew strong

inflows in the week to March 25 as hopes for de-escalation in

the Middle East lifted sentiment after U.S. President Donald

Trump postponed an attack on Iranian energy infrastructure and

proposed a deal to end the war.

Investors poured a net $37.24 billion into U.S. equity

funds, the largest weekly inflow since mid-November 2024,

snapping a three-week run of net selling, LSEG Lipper data

showed.

However, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell more

than 2% on Thursday as Iran continued to deny any talks with the

U.S., deepening doubts over a swift resolution to the nearly

one-month-long conflict.

Investors bought U.S. large-cap funds for the first time in

seven weeks, adding a net $45.07 billion. Mid-cap and small-cap

funds saw net outflows of $2.15 billion and $1.24 billion,

respectively.

U.S. sectoral funds posted a net $2.9 billion in outflows,

the largest weekly withdrawal since December 24, with investors

pulling a net $1.45 billion from tech, $974 million from gold

and precious metals, and $507 million from healthcare.

U.S. bond funds attracted a net $7.56 billion, down nearly a

third from the $12.05 billion added a week earlier.

Short-to-intermediate investment-grade funds drew a net

$2.03 billion, the smallest amount in three weeks, while general

domestic taxable fixed income funds saw net outflows of $1.11

billion.

Short-to-intermediate government and treasury funds received

a net $9.07 billion, their biggest weekly purchase since at

least May 2024.

Money market funds saw $57.96 billion in net withdrawals as

investors ended a five-week run of net purchases.