A recent survey conducted by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), found that 36 percent of respondents said they have little or no confidence in financial security after retirement.  

That data point, too, is creeping up; A year ago, 27 percent of workers lacked retirement confidence.  

Transamerica research found that only 17 percent of Generation X workers are “very confident” of a comfortable retirement. The oldest people in that cohort are nearing age 60. 

The summer of 2023 might seem an odd moment for Americans to feel short of retirement funds. Nearly three-quarters of all 401(k) money sits in stocks, and the stock market is booming, although this week has been rocky. 

But the full story of American retirement planning is more complicated.  

One big reason workers are worrying about retirement is inflation, which surged in 2021 and 2022 after many years of relatively flat prices.  

“How to make the dollars and cents of retirement work is a constant balancing act for those who are retired and Americans hoping to reach that milestone one day,” said Clifford Young, president of Ipsos Public Affairs.

Census data also shows more than two-fifths of baby boomers in the 55-64 age group have no retirement savings. Many work for small companies that don’t offer retirement savings, or work for themselves, or lack the income to put money away.

The Hill’s Daniel De Visé digs further here.