Annuity Market Will Cool in 2023 as Interest Costs Soar: Expert Forecast
A tumbling stock market and higher interest rates are forcing consumers to buy annuities. According to LIMRA, a trade group for the insurance industry, annuity sales in the third quarter of 2022 approached $80 billion, just beating the $79.4 billion record set in Q2. It’s an impressive 27% increase over last year. As in 2008, purchasing decisions seem largely driven by concern about stock market volatility and recession possibilities. If you recall, the S&P 500 stock index officially entered a bear market in June and has remained low since. Due to this, investors holding U.S. bonds, which typi...