T. Rowe Price Associates Inc. this week introduced a new family of mutual funds that allow investors to select among three different asset allocation strategies.

The new T. Rowe Price Personal Strategy Funds include an income fund (with a mix of 40 percent stocks, 40 percent bonds and 20 percent cash); a balanced fund (60 percent stocks, 30 percent bonds and 10 percent cash); and a growth fund (80 percent stocks and 20 percent bonds and cash).

The Personal Strategy Funds "simplify the investment process by offering these asset allocation funds with different risk/reward characteristics," James S. Riepe, managing director and president of T. Rowe Price Investment Services, said in a statement.

The funds differ from other growth, income or balanced funds in that they will pursue a variety of investment styles within each broad category of securities, both equity and fixed-income.

For instance, each of the funds will invest in large-cap, mid-cap and small-cap stocks, and will include both growth and value stocks. Likewise, the fixed-income investments will include bonds of different maturities, high-grade and more speculative debt, foreign and domestic offerings, as well as mortgage-backed securities.

The minimum investment is $2,500 and $1,000 for individual retirement accounts.

Peter Van Dyke is president of the three personal strategy funds.