401k plans rise in value

Fidelity Investments reports that for the third quarter of 2012, the average balance of individual 401(k) accounts rose by four percent.


According to Business Week:

Employee 401(k) accounts grew more than 4 percent in the third quarter as a rising stock market boosted investment returns, and contributions from workers and their employers increased ... [T]he average balance of $75,900 at the end of the quarter was the highest since it began tracking the data in 2000.

Three months earlier, the average account balance among the 12 million accounts that Fidelity administers was $72,800.

The Standard & Poor's 500 stock index rose nearly 6 percent in the July to September period, boosting investment returns in 401(k)s. The gain helped investors recover from a nearly 3 percent market decline in the previous quarter ...