TSP funds at the Monday close

Every TSP fund finished Monday higher, though the size of the gains varied a lot. The S Fund led at +1.03% to $101.4893. The C Fund followed at +0.84% to $108.9747. The F Fund added 0.28% to $21.1207, the G Fund edged up 0.03% to $19.7439, and the I Fund was nearly flat at +0.04%, closing at $58.0001.

The S Fund's gain was the only one-day move above 1%. It tracks the Dow Jones U.S. Completion index, which holds mid-sized and smaller companies outside the S&P 500. Those stocks tend to swing more than the big names, and Monday's gain fits that pattern.

The C Fund follows the S&P 500, which rose 0.83% in the prior session. That is almost identical to the fund's 0.84%, which is what you would expect from a fund built to mirror the index.

The five-day picture is less cheerful

Monday's gains came after a rough week. The I Fund is down 5.5% over five days, the steepest drop on the board. The S Fund is down 3.14% and the C Fund is down 1.21% over the same stretch. The I Fund still leads the year at +3.52%, while the C Fund (-0.7%) and S Fund (-0.18%) are slightly negative year to date. The data here does not say what caused the week's drop, so I will not guess.

Bonds and the G Fund

The F Fund tracks the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate bond index. Its +0.28% matches the Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF (BND), which also rose 0.28%. The 10-year Treasury yield barely changed at 4.136%. The G Fund pays a Treasury-based rate with no price swings, so it simply crept up 0.03%. It is up 0.77% for the year.

L Funds

The L Funds blend the other five funds, so their gains line up with how much stock each one holds. L 2055 through L 2075 gained 0.58% each. L 2050 rose 0.50%, L 2040 rose 0.44%, L 2030 rose 0.36%, and L Income, the most conservative, rose 0.20%. The five-day losses run in the same order, from -0.78% for L Income to -2.93% for the longest-dated funds. Year to date, they all sit close together between 0.85% and 0.91%.

What moved IRA index funds and ETFs

The numbers below are from the prior session close. They give a rough guide to the markets behind many IRAs, but they are not an exact match for the TSP's Monday close.

  • S&P 500: 6,795.99, up 0.83%
  • Dow Jones Industrial Average: 47,740.801, up 0.50%
  • Nasdaq Composite: 22,695.949, up 1.38%
  • Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (VTI): $334.28, up 0.87%
  • Vanguard Total International Stock ETF (VXUS): $78.95, up 1.24%
  • Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF (BND): $74.45, up 0.28%

Stocks rose across the board. The Nasdaq's 1.38% gain was the largest of the group, so growth-heavy holdings did better than the blue-chip Dow. VTI's 0.87% sits close to the S&P 500, as you would expect from a fund that holds nearly the whole U.S. market. VXUS rose 1.24%, a strong day for international stocks, though the I Fund's five-day slump shows how rough the week was abroad. Bonds rose modestly with yields nearly flat.

What it means for your plan

One good Monday does not erase a weak week, and one weak week rarely changes a long-term plan. Retirement accounts are built over years of contributions, and short stretches like this tend to fade into the background on a multi-decade chart.

This recap is general information, not advice for your situation. Your mix of funds, your timeline and your comfort with risk matter far more than any single day's numbers. If you are not sure whether your allocation still fits, a fee-only planner or your agency's benefits office can help you think it through.