Ticker Talk

U.S. mutual funds distributed a total of $345 billion in capital gains last year, smashing the previous record by 45%, according to an industry trade group. The previous high of $238 billion was distributed in 1999, the Investment Company Institute said. The institute’s report noted, however, that 65% of stock and bond fund assets held by households (a figure that excludes businesses and institutional investors) is in tax-deferred accounts such as IRAs and 401(k)s.