Expense Ratios represent the fraction of assets under management deducted per year. 12b-1 fees are the predetermined percent of a mutual fund's assets used to defray marketing expenses. The amount of the fee is stated in the fund's prospectus. Marketing fees are included in the expense ratio when there are no 12b-1 fees.

Benchmarks: In January 1982, there were 347 equity funds and 138 fixed-income funds with average expense ratios of 1.17 percent and 0.86 percent, respectively. Since then, 3,011 new equity funds and 3,283 fixed-income funds have been formed with average expense ratios of 1.53 percent and 1.01 percent, respectively.