Cash on the sidelines today
How much cash waits in money-market funds next to the value of US stocks.
Close of Friday 6 November 2026 · updated every trading day
Where is it now?
How much cash is waiting on the sidelines?
Less than usual
lower than in 8 of 10 months since 2006
What is it?
Cash on the sidelines compares the money in US money-market funds with the value of all US company shares. A low value means that little cash waits next to the stock market. A high value means that much cash waits.
How we measure it
We divide the money in US money-market funds by the value of all US company shares. Both come from the Federal Reserve's Financial Accounts (Z.1), each quarter since 1974. The gauge places today against the quarters since 2006.
Why it is low now
AI-writtenWritten for the close of Wednesday 4 November 2026AI writes this text each trading day from our own figures for this page. We check every number against those figures before we show the text. It gives facts only. It is not advice.
Cash on the sidelines is 6.8%, a Low level. It compares money-market fund assets with US stock market value. In Q2 2026, fund assets grew 12.8% over 1 year, but stock value grew 25.9%. Adjusted for interest rates, the level is Normal.
What changed?
AI-writtenWritten for the close of Wednesday 4 November 2026AI writes this text each trading day from our own figures for this page. We check every number against those figures before we show the text. It gives facts only. It is not advice.
It held at 6.8% over the month and fell from 7.6% a year ago.
HistoryEach point is one quarter. The dot is today. Labels mark well-known moments in the market.
Cash on the sidelines since 1974
What does it mean for a long-term investor?
AI-writtenWritten for the close of Wednesday 4 November 2026AI writes this text each trading day from our own figures for this page. We check every number against those figures before we show the text. It gives facts only. It is not advice.
Money-market funds hold cash-like savings. Rising stock prices shrink this ratio even when cash grows. Higher interest rates also attract cash. One indicator alone does not time the market.
What does it not tell you?
The ratio does not tell you if the cash goes into stocks. Money-market funds grow when interest rates are high, for reasons that have nothing to do with stocks. The data comes each quarter, some months after the quarter ends.