About one-fifth of the 1.1m people who opened SSIAs between 2001 and 2002 invested part or all of their savings in stocks. Hugh O'Keeffe, head of deposit strategy and products at AIB, estimated that their funds represented roughly 23 percent of all SSIA money, or 3.7bn of the total 16bn stashed in SSIA funds.

Many of those who invested in equitybased SSIAs were among the first wave of savers in 2001. Kevin Manning, head of marketing at Bank of Ireland Life, said that, despite last week's market slide, the typical managed fund would still be generating returns "well ahead" of any deposit-based products. But equitybased SSIA savers are likely to have seen roughly 1,000 wiped from their accounts in the past week.

By Friday, European stocks were headed for their worst weekly decline since March 2003 over speculation that the European Central Bank and the US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates to combat inflation. The Iseq index has fallen by over 4.8% so far this month, and fell more than 2.8% last week.

"Short-term fluctuations in the market should not influence those who have a long term investment in mind, " said Quinn Life's general manager, Siobhan Gannon. Despite the drop in markets, Irish equities are still up by 4% in the year to date, she said.

Investors who opened a Quinn Life Celtic Freeway SSIA in May 2001, and who contributed the maximum 254 a month, would have seen the value of their savings rise to 28,100 in midApril. The same fund is now worth 530 less, but would still have grown in value by 45% from its inception to last Wednesday, Gannon said.

Consumer champion Eddie Hobbs last week urged investors not to panic, stressing that he did not believe the fall in stock markets is the beginning of a rout. "We could be only half way through the recovery in equities since the dotcom bust, " he said. "Probably the best thing savers can do is to continue to invest."

Gary Connolly, chairman of the Retail Funds Committee with the Irish Association of Investment Managers, advised that last week's correction should not deter long-term savers, noting that equity markets have seen 44 months' growth. But he said that anyone who has already earmarked funds from an equity-based SSIA about to mature for major outlays such as a new car or home extension, should consider shifting the lump sum to a deposit account.

"Many people with equity SSIAs will continue to invest in PRSAs or AVCs [Additional Voluntary Contributions] once the SSIAs finish, " he said. "At this stage, they've already made a lot of money."