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PLANSPONSOR NEWSDASH LOGO January 28th, 2022
Insight on Plan Design & Investment Strategy Every Weekday
Participants
Participant Call Volumes and Website Visits Spike in January
Participant Call Volumes and Website Visits Spike in January
Recordkeepers say that, historically, retirement plan participants reassess their retirement savings and readiness picture at the beginning of the year.
Awards
Nominations for Plan Adviser of the Year Opens
PLANSPONSOR’s sister publication PLANADVISER is soliciting your help in identifying the best retirement plan advisers in the country. If you work with or for, or know of, a great plan adviser or plan adviser team, please help us recognize the best in the business. Nominations for the 2022 PLANADVISER Retirement Plan Adviser of the Year awards are now being accepted in six categories: Plan Sponsor Service; Plan Participant Service; Mentorship; Efforts in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI); Community Impact and Giving Back; and Closing the Coverage Gap. Advisers and adviser teams can be nominated by clicking on this link.
Most Read
Deals and People
Voya Keeps Building Government Markets Team With Rehire
Participants
Housing Expenses Drive Spending Volatility in Retirement
Data and Research
Unplanned Financial Challenges Continue to Plague US Workers’ Retirement Savings
Economic Events
New orders for manufactured durable goods in December decreased $2.4 billion or 0.9% to $267.6 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau announced. This decrease, down following two consecutive monthly increases, followed a 3.2% November increase. Excluding transportation, new orders increased 0.4%. Excluding defense, new orders increased 0.1%. Transportation equipment, down three of the last four months, drove the decrease, $3.3 billion or 3.9% to $80.1 billion.

Interest on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 3.55% for the week ending January 27, down slightly from last week when it averaged 3.56%, according to Freddie Mac. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 2.73%. Interest on a 15-year FRM averaged 2.80%, up slightly from last week when it averaged 2.79%. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 2.20%.

In the week ending January 22, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims for unemployment insurance was 260,000, a decrease of 30,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 290,000, the Labor Department reported. The four-week moving average was 247,000, an increase of 15,000 from the previous week’s revised average of 232,000.
Market Mirror
Thursday, the Dow was down 7.31 points (0.02%) at 34,160.78, the Nasdaq lost 189.34 points (1.40%) to finish at 13,352.78, and the S&P 500 decreased 23.42 points (0.54%) to 4,326.51. The Russell 2000 fell 45.18 points (2.29%) to 1,931.29, and the Wilshire 5000 closed 355.35 points (0.81%) lower at 43,340.60.

The price of the 10-year Treasury note increased 27/32, bringing its yield down to 1.807%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond climbed 1 28/32, decreasing its yield to 2.092%.
Data and Research
Many Investors View Digital Assets as Good Retirement Investments
Advisers surveyed by Capitalize expressed a different view.
Inside Angle
Excessive Fee Suits’ Future
Northwestern University’s case will have massive implications.
Investing
Adjusting TDFs Amid Jittery Markets
One of the obvious and lasting appeals of multi-asset-class portfolios such as TDFs is their potential to provide retirement plan participants with a smoother ride when markets are volatile.
Small Talk
ON THIS DATE: In 1878, the first telephone switchboard was installed in New Haven, Connecticut. In 1901, professional baseball’s American League was founded in Chicago. In 1902, the Carnegie Institution was established in Washington, D.C. It began with a gift of $10 million from Andrew Carnegie. In 1915, the Coast Guard was created by an act of Congress to fight contraband trade and aid distressed vessels at sea. In 1916, Louis D. Brandeis was appointed by President Woodrow Wilson to the U.S. Supreme Court, becoming its first Jewish member. In 1922, the National Football League (NFL) franchise in Decatur, Illinois, transferred to Chicago and took the name Chicago Bears. In 1985, 45 music stars gathered to record “We Are the World.” The record sold more than 7 million copies and raised more than $60 million for African famine relief. In 1986, the space shuttle Challenger exploded after liftoff. In 1997, Clive Davis received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1999, Ford Motor Company announced the purchase of Sweden’s Volvo AB for $6.45 billion.

And now it’s time for some FRIDAY FUN!
A little girl’s impression of Donald Trump.

This little boy caught a fish as big as he is.

In West Hartford, Connecticut, a couple planted a rose bush in their year three years ago and recently noticed a new stem growing next to the plant. The single rose has grown to 22 feet, 10 inches in height. They are now attempting to have the rose officially recognized thy Guinness World Records.

And speaking of world records, a man from Karaj, Iran, has broken an unusual one. He balanced 85 spoons on his body, besting the record of 64 previously set by a man in Spain.

In Catawba, North Carolina, Bandys High School said in a Facebook post that a book, titled “Basic Clutches and Transmissions,” arrived in the mail recently. A student checked out the book from the school’s library in 1979 and sent it back along with a “heartfelt” apology letter, the school said, according to UPI.

Have a good weekend!
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