Few IRA owners add new money

DES MOINES, Iowa » Individual retirement accounts hold more than a quarter of all retirement assets in the United States — about $4.2 trillion. To put that in perspective, that’s almost 10 percent of the financial assets owned by all U.S. households. Yet only a small percentage of accountholders contribute new money to them, according to a recent study by the Investment Company Institute.

The study shows just 9.4 percent of investors in traditional IRA accounts added contributions in 2008, down from the 11.2 percent in 2007. The data used for this study focused on account totals in 2007 and 2008, ICI said.

The IRA was created by Congress in 1974 as a way to set aside a portion of income free of taxes for retirement and as a place of workers to roll over their 401(k) accounts when they leave their jobs, so that they can consolidate various accounts.

Total recall

Baby Matters LLC recalled about 30,000 Nap Nanny portable baby recliners after a 4-month-old died and 22 infants fell out, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said.

Nap Nanny is designed to be used when infants are sleeping, resting or playing, using a harness to keep the baby in place, the agency said. Infants can fall out or hang over the side even when the harness is being used, the CPSC said.

The product, which costs about $130, has been sold in toy and children’s stores since January 2009. For more information, contact Baby Matters toll-free at 888-240-4282 between 3 and 11 a.m. HST Monday through Friday or visit the firm’s website at www.napnanny.com/recall.