Will fixed indexed annuities continue their sales hot streak?

In 2013, fixed indexed annuities may have felt a bit like the wallflower that finally got asked to the prom. After years in the shadow of their more popular peers, variable annuities, fixed indexed annuities started to rack up record sales as 2013 came to a close. Meanwhile, variable annuities slipped in sales and were left to shuffle their feet at the punchbowl, waiting for more dance partners. Perhaps too much can be read into quarter-by-quarter peaks and valleys in sales, and VA sales dipped only slightly, but the question the industry may need to monitor in 2014 is whether fixed indexed annuities can still capture the fancy of retirees and pre-retirees haunted by past market crashes, especially if interest rates rise and the stock market recovers further