Can We Survive Four More Years?
This always-bearish guest columnist expects that it will eventually be morning again in America, but not without an intervening period of financial chaos and catastrophe.
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A Primer on Safety-First Retirement Planning
Pfau reviews a new book on retirement income planning by financial planner Erin Botsford, who he says "does a good job explaining the safety-first approach to readers who may...
As an Investment, Will Gold Pan Out?
A new research paper asks whether it makes sense to invest in gold and arrives at surprising conclusions--and some interesting historical trivia.
Immediate annuities unattractive today: Journal of Financial Planning
David Blanchett's article is filled with charts and tables demonstrating the value of an immediate annuity at different ages, different withdrawal rates, and different prevailing interest rates.
Guardian Life launches deferred income annuity
"There’s such a great need for income-producing products, that there's no threat of cannibalizing sales” between Guardian Life's variable annuity with living benefits and its new deferred income annuity,...
From Prudential, Prudent Forecasts for 2013
“We’re overweight stocks across the world. We’re also overweight high-yield bonds even though the rally there has been going on a long time,” said Edward F. Keon of Quantitative...
Strategic Insights looks into “managed volatility”
A new proprietary research report asks, among other questions, whether managed volatility funds actually enhance market performance or if they sacrifice too much upside in exchange for downside protection.
2012: Resumption of the Stock Market Recovery
Each January, this guest columnist provides a unique review of not just the previous year in the financial markets but of their last 87 years.
Bernanke’s Balance Sheet Ensures Disaster
Fed chairman Ben Bernanke "should start shrinking his balance sheet and allow interest rates to normalize now. When the free market does it for him it will be too...
Michael Kitces summarizes the new tax law
The well-known advisor/author (at left) tells you what you need to know about the tax law that averted (or at least delayed) the so-called fiscal cliff.
Private Equity Confidential
What are insurance people saying privately about private equity’s invasion of the life industry? Five people who are close to the recent acquisitions spoke to RIJ on the condition...
The Fiscal Cliff Has Been Avoided, But at What Cost?
Taxes will go up in 2013 relative to 2012—not only on high-income households, as widely discussed, but also on every working man and woman in the country, via the...
IRI Issues a ‘State of the Insured Retirement Industry’ Address
The report only briefly mentioned two product categories that some expected to play more prominent roles in 2012. One was contingent deferred annuities. The other was in-plan income guarantees....
That Which Does Not Kill You Makes You Stronger
You must make peace with uncertainty, randomness and volatility, claims Nassim Taleb in his new book, "Antifragile." The author of "The Black Swan" calls those who insist on trying...
Should We Live to 1,000?
Instead of trying to find a cure for age-related diseases like cancer, at least one scientist is working on a way to slow down the aging process and delay...
What, Me Worry?
I can think of at least three easy ways to stay calm while investing in equities. Life's too short and too valuable to spend it checking stock movements on...
Life Insurers, Under Three Microscopes
“Life insurers have weathered the financial crisis in terms of solvency but not in terms of profitability,” said analyst Mary Pat Campbell of Conning Research. Conning, Ernst & Young...
Fed to Link Interest, Jobless Rates
Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said the Fed still plans to suppress interest rates until at least mid-2015, even while tying any rate increase to a decline in the...
Fixed Annuity Sales Stall, but Security Benefit Stands Out
Low rates continue to weigh on fixed annuity sales, the latest Beacon Research Fixed Annuity Premium Study shows. But Beacon CEO Jeremy Alexander said he's encouraged that “a number...
Let’s Face It
Lincoln Financial, Allianz Life, and now Merrill Lynch have dabbled with artificial face-aging to worry people into saving more. It's based on behavioral finance research, but just thinking about...
