WORLDWIDE BOOM FOR MUTUAL FUNDS

During the 1980s, mutual funds have boomed around the world. Indian mutual fund assets have now climbed to tenth place in the world, notes David Silver, president of the Investment Company Institute. Unit trusts in India now have about $6.3 billion in assets.

Since 1983, the grwoth of mutual funds in Japan has been 600 percent, in Italy 2,000 percent, West Germany 330 percent, and Britain 350 percent. Similar growth has occured in Australia, Canada, Mexico, and some South American countries, says the United States mutual fund association executive.

``Mutual funds will permit the participation of investors of modest means in investment opportunities throughout the world,'' he predicted.