Sales of fixed annuities shot up in the second quarter of 2018, signaling strong demand, according to investment and research professionals.
During the second quarter, fixed annuity sales hit almost $32 billion, a 25.4% increase in sales over the first quarter of 2018 and a spike of 21.8% over the second quarter of 2017.
The surge in product growth in the annuity industry was reported by the independent research firms Beacon Research and Morningstar Inc., and shared in a Sept. 10 press release by the Insured Retirement Institute.
Fixed annuity sales rose in all product types, according to Beacon Research. Sales of fixed indexed annuities surged 20.8% to $17.7 billion from the first quarter. This boost reflects an increase of almost 23% from the second quarter of 2017.
"The fixed annuity market saw record percentage increases across the board in the second quarter," Beacon Research CEO Jeremy Alexander stated in the release. Alexander said the data shows strong demand among advisors and consumers "for safety and guaranteed income."
Overall annuity sales hit $56 billion in the second quarter of 2018. This reflects an almost 16% spike from first quarter sales of $48.3 billion, and a 12.3% increase from overall annuity sales of $49.9 billion in the year-ago quarter, according to the data.
