401(k) Participant Trading Low at Start of 2017

The new year started with light trading activity for investors in defined contribution plans, according to the Aon Hewitt 401(k) Index.

There were no days of above-normal trading in January. On average, 0.017% of balances traded each day. For 13 of the 20 trading days in January, participants favored equities over fixed income funds in their trades.

Funds with the most inflows in January included Large U.S. Equity funds ($112 million), International funds ($66 million) and Mid U.S. Equity funds ($36 million). Funds with the most outflows were Stable Value funds ($114 million), Company Stock funds ($86 million) and Bond funds ($43 million).

After combining contributions, trades, and market activity in participants’ accounts, the percentage of balances in equities was 65.9% at the end of January, up from 65.4% at the end of December. New contributions continue to favor stocks, with 66.1% of employee contributions were into equities—an increase from 65.2% in December.