Do Mutual Funds Count as Savings?

Question: You recently did a piece on savings, and it made me wonder. Every month, I shunt some money automatically into mutual funds (nothing to do with an official retirement account). The portion that is in a money market fund, I think of as savings. But would this be considered savings to people who classify such things?

Paul Solman: Savings is the difference between what you spend and what you earn. Period. See our in-depth explanation at our Making Sen$e site, with our feature Finance Fallacy: Saving vs. Investing.