Groups appeal decision that upheld U.S. rule on retirement advice

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Five U.S. financial services groups on Friday appealed a federal court decision handed down earlier this month that upheld an Obama-era rule designed to avoid conflicts of interests when brokers give retirement advice.

"This is a misguided rule that will harm retirement savers and financial services firms that provide needed assistance and options to their clients, including modest savers and small business employees," the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Financial Services Institute, Financial Services Roundtable, Insured Retirement Institute, and Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association said in a statement.

The groups had sued to halt the Labor Department's recently enacted "fiduciary" rule requiring brokers to put their clients' best interests first when advising them about individual retirement accounts or 401(k) retirement plans. But Chief Judge Barbara Lynn for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas ruled that the department had weighed adequately weighed the costs of complying with the rule against the benefits provided to consumers.

(Reporting by Lisa Lambert; Editing by Leslie Adler)