Retirement Funds Return to the Red in August

All but one of the retirement funds in the federal Thrift Savings Plan closed August in the red, ending a short-lived rebound in July.

The lone exception was the government securities (G) fund, which gained 0.18 percent last month. The fund -- one of the most stable TSP offerings -- has earned 1.12 percent so far this year.

Fixed income bonds lost the least ground of the other four basic funds in August, ending the month down 0.48 percent. The F Fund has lost 2.62 percent for 2012.

International stocks in the I Fund lost 1.31 percent in August, but were up 7.56 percent for the year to date.  The small and midsize companies represented in the S Fund lost 2.76 percent for the month. They were still up 20.3 percent for 2012.

The C Fund, invested in common stocks, posted the biggest losses in August, at 2.89 percent. The fund has earned 16.18 percent for the year so far.

Lifecycle funds -- designed to move investors to less risky portfolios as they near retirement – followed similar patterns. The L Income Fund for TSP participants who have already started withdrawing money ended August down 0.39 percent. L 2020 lost 1.22 percent for the month, L 2030 was down 1.6 percent, L 2040 was 1.87 percent in the red and L 2050 decreased 2.11 percent.

The lifecycle funds all remained in the black for the year to date, however. L Income was up 3.52 percent for 2012; L 2020, 7.79 percent; L 2030, 9.68 percent; L 2040, 11.08 percent; and L 2050, 12.37 percent. 

(Image via Trzmiel/Shutterstock.com)