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 The top financial concerns for Americans are day-to-day issues such as 
 the cost of living and healthcare costs, but they are also working to 
 address their retirement needs by moving cash into the market, according 
 to the Global Investor Pulse survey from BlackRock BLK.
 

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 Retirement was cited by Americans as the most important financial 
 priority (43%) after saving money generally (58%). In keeping with this 
 focus on retirement and demonstrating an increased interest in 
 investing, Americans have decreased cash allocations since BlackRock's 
 [election pulse] survey in November 2016.
 
 
 "Americans continue to grapple with day-to-day financial concerns, but 
 they also recognize the importance of saving for retirement," said 
 BlackRock President Rob Kapito. "Americans are showing an increased 
 willingness to invest and save for the future."
 
 
 On average, cash now totals 58% of Americans' assets, down from 67% in 
 late 2016. Among those Americans most actively considering stepping 
 further out of cash, the top reasons to do so are "the return is better 
 in the long run" (34%) and "to be better prepared for retirement" (33%).
 
 
 Despite improvements, Americans still hold excess cash and many are 
 reluctant to part with it. Less than half (45%) of Americans with cash 
 are considering deploying more of it to investments.
 
 
 Americans also expressed the importance of financial guidance, with 38% 
 stating that "having a clear understanding of the risks and returns of 
 the investment" is a key factor that would encourage them to invest more.
 
 
 Challenges Remain: Underinvestment Creates a Retirement Savings Gap
 
 
 Four in 10 Americans (39%) have not started saving for retirement, with 
 women (43%) considerably more likely than men (35%) not to be retirement 
 savers.
 
 
 The savings gap seems to be weighing on retirement confidence, with just 
 47% of Americans either knowing (16%) or thinking they know (31%) that 
 they are on track to receive the income they want in retirement. Only 
 one in three Americans (36%) are confident they will have the retirement 
 income they need.
 
 
 "Many Americans are facing a big gap in their retirement savings, but 
 financial advice can be a key factor in helping people develop a plan 
 and get back on track," said Kapito. "Americans are telling us that 
 having advice plays a key role in their financial decision-making."
 
 
 According to the BlackRock research, on average, Americans estimate that 
 they will need about $48,700 in annual retirement income, and expect to 
 need $437,500 in savings by the time they retire. Yet, that much in 
 accumulated assets would fund Americans' desired income for only about 
 nine years – vs. the 17 years that Americans on average can expect to 
 live past retirement age. Americans are also not keeping pace even with 
 that inadequate savings goal: On average, they have accumulated just 
 $55,000 for retirement, only about 13% of what they expect to need.
 
 
 Use of Technology Aligns with Positive Planning Action
 
 
 Using technology to monitor investments and retirement savings 
 encourages people to take action to improve their financial futures or 
 to adjust to a more realistic understanding of their finances, the 
 BlackRock survey indicates. More than three quarters of Americans who 
 are monitoring their retirement plans online have taken positive action 
 as a result: About four in 10 (39%) have decided to spend less, 24% have 
 increased pension contributions, and 20% have changed their income 
 expectations for retirement. Americans who are most actively considering 
 moving cash to investments are considerably more likely than other 
 Americans (70%) to be interested in using technology to choose a 
 portfolio.
 
 
 "Technology is having an incredible, positive impact on Americans' 
 investing behavior," said Kapito. "Not only does it give people the 
 information and the confidence they need about their finances – it is 
 helping them make smarter decisions."
 
 
 About nine of 10 (89%) of those managing investments online say it has 
 had a positive impact on their investing behavior; about four in 10 say 
 that online monitoring lets them "feel like I am more in control of my 
 money" and "reassures me about what my money is doing."
 
 
 Among those managing investments online, Millennials are more likely 
 than any other age group to say that technology has "encouraged me to 
 keep investing" and "I feel more confident about investing now."
 
 
 About BlackRock
 
 
 BlackRock is a global leader in investment management, risk management 
 and advisory services for institutional and retail clients. At March 31, 
 2017, BlackRock's AUM was $5.4 trillion. BlackRock helps clients around 
 the world meet their goals and overcome challenges with a range of 
 products that include separate accounts, mutual funds, iShares® 
 (exchange-traded funds), and other pooled investment vehicles. BlackRock 
 also offers risk management, advisory and enterprise investment system 
 services to a broad base of institutional investors through BlackRock 
 Solutions®. As of March 31, 2017, the firm had 
 approximately 13,000 employees in more than 30 countries and a major 
 presence in global markets, including North and South America, Europe, 
 Asia, Australia and the Middle East and Africa. For additional 
 information, please visit the Company's website at <a xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blackrock.com%2Finvesting%3Fcid%3Dsynd%3Apr%3Aboilerplate&amp;esheet=51569688&amp;newsitemid=20170605005882&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=www.blackrock.com&amp;index=1&amp;md5=9b167556941ef59ac990862fc687d170" rel="nofollow" rel="nofollow">www.blackrock.com</a> 
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 | LinkedIn: <a xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fcompany%2Fblackrock&amp;esheet=51569688&amp;newsitemid=20170605005882&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=www.linkedin.com%2Fcompany%2Fblackrock&amp;index=4&amp;md5=b8e836e44ab453f9daa21613a7fc11d4" rel="nofollow" rel="nofollow">www.linkedin.com/company/blackrock</a>
 
 
 About the Global Investor Pulse Survey
 
 
 BlackRock's Global Investor Pulse Survey examines investing and 
 attitudes and behaviors across the world. The 2017 survey included 
 28,000 respondents in 18 countries. The U.S. sample included 4,000 
 respondents. More information can be found at <a xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blackrock.com%2Finvesting%2Finsights%2Finvestor-pulse&amp;esheet=51569688&amp;newsitemid=20170605005882&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blackrock.com%2Finvesting%2Finsights%2Finvestor-pulse&amp;index=5&amp;md5=8192893b8b4dd23dd34e99101afd63aa" rel="nofollow" rel="nofollow">https://www.blackrock.com/investing/insights/investor-pulse</a>.
 
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