PLANSPONSOR Magazine

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Another Big Year for US Investment Abroad

Undeterred by a nearly 14% negative return on EAFE, Morgan Stanley Capital International's benchmark non-US equity index, US investors continued to pour new money into overseas stock markets...
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Calling In the Sharks

Pension funds have traditionally shied away from suing their managers, brokers, and trust banks. But that attitude may now be changing.
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Hanged In Effigy

Harvard Management's suit against Merrill Lynch shows that even the sophisticated can be taken for a ride.
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“The Last Great Untapped Source of Capital”

Will Willie Clinton make like Willie Sutton, and go where the money is? If he does, his six-shooters are likely to be pension taxation and infrastructure investment.
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Everything New is Old Again

For pensions, the Clinton economic team presents a mixed bag of some good news, some bad news, and an enigma.
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Mending the Dam

Will the PBGC shortfall be Clinton's S&L crisis?
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Catch-401 (k)

Defined contribution plans are sweeping the nation. But the trend has its problems-and it is not yet clear whether anyone can save 401(k) investors from themselves.
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The Quiet Lobbyist

Private pension funds have struggled to find a voice for their investment concerns in Washington. In CIEBA, they may have found it-right at the time when it has...
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Canada’s Sharp-Toothed Watchdog

The PIAC is Canada's top lobbyist on pension issues. Economically targeted investing is its big new challenge
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Dealer’s Choice

Pension funds' fixation on commission costs has helped create a market that often works against their own interests. To solve the problem, they must learn to look more...
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Doing Due Diligence

Trading costs-and what plan sponsors can do about them
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Canada’s Harvest of Embarrassment

Few front-running cases ever reach the public gaze. One that did was the case against Dominion Securities broker Michael Biscotti.
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Union-Made

The AFL-CIO gets serious about developing an integrated pro-labor investment strategy for its pensions. New guidelines sanction both foreign investing and ETIs
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Multifamily Madness

Mortgage-backed securities have not held much appeal for pensions in a long time. But a bubbling market in multifamily paper may change that.
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Passing the Quality Test

Total quality management is catching on with private plan sponsors. For some, it means revamping-even reducing-the fund's outside manager relationships.
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Georgia On My Mind

What do you do when your investment manager has a public relations problem that could turn into a disaster?
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Ontario’s Infrastructure Skirmish

The province's socialist government wanted to combine its five big pension funds to promote infrastructure investment. When the funds balked, the government backed off
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The Year of the Pension

Changes are in the air as Japan's pension system readies for its five-year check-up in 1993.
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Coming Home

In-house options strategies are on the rise at pension funds.
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Looking for the Payoff

Two recent studies indicate that corporate governance initiatives can indeed boost the bottom line for pensions that want to be activist investors.
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No More Welfare State

A shareholder revolt in the Netherlands offers hope for investors frustrated by low returns on big Dutch multinationals.
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STIF-Arming

"Enhanced" STIFs are appealing to pension sponsors in search of greater yield on their cash balances.
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Head Start

With FAS 106 now in effect, health benefit accounting is an urgent issue for US companies. The best approach is to start planning early. Very early.
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The Cost of Going Green Again

Their future still in question, nuclear decommissioning trusts are not rushing to take advantage of lower tax rates and new, looser investment restrictions.
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Hope for the Little Guy

With or without Washington's help, the first tax-advantaged, pooled funds for small foundations is expected to be launched this year.
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The Bloomberg Factor

While many plan sponsors find Bloombergs useful, only the most sophisticated consider the popular information and analytics tool a must-have.
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Cracks in the Facade

Canada's trust services market is opening up. For pensions the results are competition, lower fees, and lots of new products.