401(k)s thrived in slump.(Short Interests)

Investment News, October, 2005

Byline: Sara Hansard WASHINGTON - Americans who continuously maintained their 401(k) accounts from 1999 to 2004 had balance increases averaging 36% during one of the worst bear markets since the Great Depression. That is the chief finding of a survey released Wednesday by the Employee Benefit Research Institute and the Investment Company Institute, both based here.

The account balances included added contributions. The average account balance rose to $91,042 at the end of last year, from $67,016 at the end of 1999, for people who maintained and added to their accounts during the entire period. But account balances for participants in their 20s rose 206% during the period, reflecting the effect of their contributions and the fact that the...

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