Reston, VA, December 19, 2007 - NAVA, the Association for Insured Retirement Solutions, today announced third quarter results for the variable annuity industry.  The combined net assets of U.S. variable annuities increased 2.7% to $1.5 trillion at the end of the third quarter, as compared with the end of the second quarter of 2007.  Net assets increased by 15.3% relative to the third quarter one year ago.

Table 1.  Variable Annuity Net Assets

(Dollars in Millions)                       9/30/07             6/30/07            3/31/07        9/30/06

Total Net Assets                        1,492,750        1,453,638        1,389,880        1,294,174     

^{_{Source: Morningstar, Inc.}}                                                       

Total variable annuity premium flows, or total sales, for the third quarter were $46.2 billion, a 24.9% increase from the third quarter of 2006.  Third quarter net flows of $9.4 billion showed an increase of 0.6% from third quarter 2006 net flows of $9.3 billion.  The mix in premiums for the third quarter showed that 61.2% of the total premium flow was in qualified plans and 38.8% in non-qualified plans. 

Total premium flows, or total sales, for the first nine months of 2007 were $134.4 billion, a 14.9% increase from the prior year's nine-month sales of $117.0 billion.  Cumulative net flows for the first nine months of 2007 were $24.5 billion, or 18.2% of total flows.

Table 2.  Variable Annuity Premium Flows¹

                                                      Quarter Ended                    Nine Months Ended

(Dollars in Millions)                  9/30/07            9/30/06            9/30/07            9/30/06

Total Premium Flows                 46,216             36,999           134,419           117,014

Net Flows                                  9,375               9,317             24,470             24,521

^{Source: Morningstar, Inc.}

Table 3.  Quarterly Variable Annuity Total Premium & Net Flows

                                                                Quarter Ended

($ Millions)          9/30/07          6/30/07          3/31/07         12/31/06         9/30/06

Total Sales          $46,215.8      $47,253.6      $40,949.8      $40,378.1     $36,998.6         

Net Flows           $9,375.0         $8,669.8        $6,425.5        $5,245.1      $9,317.3           

Net Flows as %       20.3%             18.3%          15.7%            13.0%         25.2%          
of total sales

^{Source: Morningstar, Inc.}

The mix of net assets by investment objective showed that $907.4 billion, or 60.8% of total assets, was held in equity accounts.  This is an increase of 18.8% as compared with the third quarter of 2006 when $763.6 billion, or 59.0%, were held in equity accounts.  The mix also shows that $255.8 billion, or 17.1% of assets, were held in fixed accounts.

Table 4.  Variable Annuity Assets by Asset Class

(As a percent of total assets)                                   9/30/07                  9/30/06

Equity                                                                     60.8%                    59.0%
Fixed Accounts                                                         17.1                       20.4
Balanced                                                                  11.3                       10.0
Bonds                                                                        8.2                         8.1
Money Market                                                            2.6                         2.5
^{Source: Morningstar, Inc.}

About Annuities - With the demographic trend of people living longer, the decline in traditional sources of retirement income (pensions and Social Security), and the responsibility of retirement funding shifting to the individual - an annuity is a critical component of a retirement plan.  It is a long-term retirement investment vehicle offering a combination of insurance benefits, guaranteed lifetime income payments and tax-deferred savings.  Variable annuities allow individuals to invest in a variety of underlying fixed and equity funds, and provide returns based on the performance of these funds.  Only annuities protect retirement assets against market volatility and guarantee retirement income that cannot be outlived.

About the NAVA, Inc. - NAVA, the Association for Insured Retirement Solutions, is a non-profit trade association located in suburban Washington D.C.  NAVA provides a variety of services to the industry including educational forums, research, and conferences aimed at furthering the development and understanding of fixed and variable annuities, income annuities and variable life insurance.  NAVA also maintains and supports an educational website for consumers at www.RetireOnYourTerms.com. 

1 - Total Premium Flows represent the sum of new sales [all first-time buyers of a contract, including inter- and intra-company exchanges] and

additional premiums from existing contract owners.  Net Flows represent Total Premium Flows minus surrenders, withdrawals, inter- and intra-company exchanges, and benefit payments