Bernanke, Equities and the November Election
In the course of his address, whose meaning was as usual camouflaged in Fed-jargon and stippled with acronyms, Bernanke more or less assured the markets that his motto remains, “Easy does it.”
A Time to Laugh, or Cry
Just in time for the Insured Retirement Institute annual meeting in San Diego September 9-11, LIMRA and Morningstar have released their first-half variable annuity sales reports.
What Happened to the ‘Auto-IRA’?
Mark Iwry (pictured), an assistant Treasury Secretary, came into the current administration with hopes of making the "Automatic IRA," a workplace savings plan for people without a plan, a reality. But it became the subject of conspiracy theories and its prospects are now dim. Photo courtesy of the National Press Foundation.
The NEST Approach to Risk
“We know that there’s no free lunch and that you have to take a certain amount of risk. But we don’t want to do anything stupid,” said the head of investment policy at the National Employment Savings Trust, the U.K.’s new “public option” DC plan.
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Life annuities are more popular than retail sales suggest: AARP
In 401(k) plans that offered life annuities, 31% of current older workers and 25% of retirees planned to elect or had elected one, a study co-authored by Sandy Mackenzie (pictured) shows.
News
One 401k provider girds for price pressure as disclosure kicks in
Simply pursuing the lowest cost is a real risk for small plan sponsors, who account for 90% of the nation’s 401(k) plans, said Kevin Watt, senior vice president of Security Benefit’s defined contribution group.
Japan gets younger, but still struggles with longevity risk
“Traditionally children would inherit their parents’ longevity risk. However, family sizes are shrinking, and the economic circumstances of parents and children have reversed. The last bastion has thus disappeared," a report from Japan says.
Marsh & McLennan gives $1.5 million to Stanford Center on Longevity
According to a release, the two organizations recently collaborated on a conference where contributors from business, academia and government addressed retirement planning in the age of longevity.
Modest GDP rebound likely in Q3: Prudential
Consumer and business spending remain the principal drivers of U.S. growth, supported by modest gains in income, profits, and a recovery in housing.
“Quote” of the Week
“Today’s stock market is a constantly evolving, bewilderingly complex electronic labyrinth. Not even sophisticated traders can say with certainty what happens to their order when they buy or sell shares of stock" -- from The Payoff: Why Wall Street Always Wins (Perseus 2012), by Jeff Connaughton.
The Bucket
Late-breaking item on The Hartford's sale of its retirement plans business to MassMutual. The Hartford’s institutional retirement business includes 33,000 mainly DC plans with $54.9 billion in AUM and over 1.5m participants. Also, items from Symetra and ING Group, which is selling its stake in Capital One, and MetLife, which has changed its income annuity.
“America the Undertaxed”
Compared with 33 other industrialized nations, total tax revenues in the U.S. were the third lowest as a percent of GDP in 2009. But MIT's Andrea Campbell doesn't necessarily think that's something to brag about.
