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| Employees Need Education About Benefits Post DOMA Ruling | |
| Roughly 50% of LGBT employees are still unsure of the impact the court decision striking down the Defense of Marriage Act will have in the workplace, according to a Lincoln survey.Read more > | |
| DC Retirement Plan Leakage Slightly Down in Q1 2016 | |
| Fewer DC plan participants took withdrawals from their plan accounts in the first quarter of this year than in the first quarter of last year. In addition, the number of outstanding loans were down.Read more > | |
| Products, Deals and People | |
| EverythingBenefits has launched a new 401(k) integration platform that automates tasks such as communicating payroll data and deferrals, monitoring employee demographics, and managing contributions. The platform is designed to increase productivity in 401(k) administration, while enhancing compliance by reducing the room for error, according to the firm.Read more > | |
| Retirement Industry People Moves | |
| Multnomah Group and Hyas Group hire consultants; TIAA acquires EverBank; and Northwest Plan Services acquires recordkeeper.Read more > | |
| Economic Events | |
The Producer Price Index for final demand decreased 0.4% in July, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Final demand prices rose 0.5% in June and 0.4% in May. In July, the index for final demand services fell 0.3%. Prices for final demand goods declined 0.4%. The U.S. Census Bureau announced that the combined value of distributive trade sales and manufacturers’ shipments for June, adjusted for seasonal and trading-day differences but not for price changes, was estimated at $1,307.8 billion, up 1.2% from May but was down 0.6% from June 2015. Advance estimates of U.S. retail and food services sales for July, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes, were $457.7 billion, virtually unchanged from the previous month, and 2.3% above July 2015. Total sales for the May through July period were up 2.5% from the same period a year ago. THE ECONOMIC WEEK AHEAD: Tomorrow, the Bureau of Labor Statistics will reveal the consumer price index for July, and the Census Bureau will report about housing starts in July. Thursday, the Labor Department will issue its initial claims report. | |
| Market Mirror | |
Friday, the Dow closed 37.05 points (0.20%) lower at 18,576.47, the NASDAQ was up 4.50 points (0.09%) at 5,232.89, and the S&P 500 decreased by 1.74 (0.08%) to 2,184.05. The Russell 2000 was virtually unchanged at 1,229.81, and the Wilshire 5000 was down 111.4 points (0.05%) at 22,659.36. On the NYSE, 3 billion shares changed hands, and on the NASDAQ, 2.7 billion shares traded, with a slight lead for declining issues on both exchanges. The price of the 10-year Treasury note increased 15/32, bringing its yield down to 1.511%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond climbed 1 8/32, decreasing its yield to 2.232%. WEEK’S WORTH: For the week ending August 12, the Dow finished 0.18% higher, the NASDAQ gained 0.23%, and the S&P 500 was up 0.06%. The Russell 2000 decreased 0.12%, and the Wilshire 5000 increased 0.11%. | |
| Compliance | |
| Retirement Security 10 Years After the PPA | |
| There are still many things plan sponsors can do under current legislation and regulations to improve retirement security of American workers.Read more > | |
| Small Talk | |
| ON THIS DATE: In 1848, the dental chair was patented by M. Waldo Hanchett. In 1877, Thomas Edison wrote to the president of the Telegraph Company in Pittsburgh. The letter stated that the word, “hello” would be a more appropriate greeting than “ahoy” when answering the telephone. In 1911, the product Crisco was introduced by Procter & Gamble Company. In 1914, the Panama Canal was officially opened to commercial traffic. The first vessel to pass through the canal was the American cargo and passenger ship SS Ancon. In 1918, diplomatic ties between the U.S. and Russia were severed. In 1945, the Allies proclaimed V-J Day a day after Japan agreed to surrender unconditionally. In 1948, the Republic of Korea was proclaimed. In 1948, CBS-TV inaugurated the first nightly news broadcast with anchorman Douglas Edwards. In 1961, East German workers began construction of the Berlin Wall. In 1986, the U.S. Senate approved a package of economic sanctions against South Africa. The ban included the importing of steel, uranium, textiles, coal, and produce from South Africa. In 1994, the U.S. Social Security Administration became an independent government agency. It had been a part of the Department of Health and Human Services. In 2001, astronomers announced the discovery of the first solar system outside our own. They had discovered two planets orbiting a star in the Big Dipper. | |
| SURVEY SAYS RESPONSES: Last week, I asked NewsDash readers, “What obstacles keep you from saving more for retirement?” Needing enough money to pay basic monthly bills was selected by the highest percentage of responding readers (29.4%). More than one-quarter said paying for unexpected expense like home repairs and saving/paying for children’s education (25.5% each) kept them from saving more for retirement. Among those who left comments about obstacles to saving more for retirement, a few said there are no obstacles if one sets her mind to saving more, with one saying we can be our own obstacles and another suggesting we use the word “excuses” rather than “obstacles.” Others provided details about their obstacles. I can relate to the reader who said: “When the kids were finally out of the house, I thought here’s my chance to catch-up. They left alright, but I’ll be danged if they didn’t forget to take their hands out of my pockets.” Editor’s Choice goes to the reader who said: “It’s a balance. My mother and two close friends died at age 53, so I am very aware of trying to strike a balance between enjoying my life pre-retirement in case I don’t make it to retirement and preparing appropriately in case I DO.” Thank you to all who participated in the survey.Read more > | |
| Share the good news with a friend! Pass the NewsDash along—and tell your friends/associates they can sign up for their own copy.Read more > |
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Editorial: Alison Cooke Mintzer alison.mintzer@strategic-i.com
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