According to a survey by the Investment Company Institute, retirement assets throughout the United States increased 11% in 2006 to a total of $16.4 trillion. That increase covers investment performance as well as transfers in and out of accounts.
My retirement accounts grew 52% last year thanks mostly to my contributions. It’s easier to have a larger percentage effect when the balances are low. At the end of 2006, my $47,715 in retirement funds accounted for 0.0000003% of the entire pool of retirement money in the country. Here’s more on the survey from MarketWatch.
How did your accounts hold up last year?
Published or updated July 25, 2007. If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to the RSS feed or receive daily emails. Follow @flexo on Twitter and visit our Facebook page for more updates.
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Luke Landes founded Consumerism Commentary in 2003 and has been building online communities since 1990. Luke, also known as Flexo, has contributed to PC World Magazine, US News, Forbes, and other publications. 
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
My retirement investments were up 15%, and my contributions were only a small part of that.
I had a similar gain, going up 20% and like Alex K., my contributions weren’t a major factor… it was more the market.
Of course, the last few days have been a little rocky, but so far this year, the gains are looking even greater!