| | Benefit Briefs | | Employees Open to Retirement Savings Intervention | | Two in five retirement plan participants polled
said employers should give employees “a slight nudge” in encouraging them to
save for retirement. An additional two in five want either “a strong nudge” or
a “kick in the pants,” according to the national survey conducted by American
Century Investments. A majority of participants (64% of those ages 55 to 65,
and 59% of those ages 25 to 54) indicated they feel having automatic enrollment
would have led to at least a minor increase in retirement savings.
Additionally, both groups favor a higher default contribution rate for
automatic enrollment. | | A new LIMRA survey shows 84% of people
participating in defined contribution (DC) retirement plans feel it is their
responsibility to fund their own retirement. The survey shows 77% of working
Americans believe all workers should have access to retirement savings plan at
work and such plans are an effective way to save for retirement. Six in 10
Americans agree that those who save in a DC plan specifically are likely to
achieve a secure retirement. | | Addressing DC Investor “Home Country Bias” | | “Home country bias” is a diversification problem
that is still dogging investors, new research suggests. U.S. companies account
for about half of the total global market capitalization and a far lower
percentage of total global revenue, according to independent reports from
Strategic Insight (an Asset International company) and Portfolio Evaluations,
Inc. (PEI)—yet it’s common for U.S. investors to maintain 80% or more of their
equity allocations in domestic stock. Both firms recently published research
warning that a greater global focus is required to truly diversify portfolio
exposures and broaden potential sources of investment returns. Achieving proper
diversification across U.S. and global markets is especially important for
workplace retirement savers. | | 401(k) Investors See Lower Mutual Fund Expenses in 2013 | | Participants of 401(k) plans saw lower expense
ratios when investing in long-term mutual funds during 2013, according to a
report from the Investment Company Institute (ICI). “The Economics of Providing
401(k) Plans: Services, Fees and Expenses, 2013” shows that at year-end 2013,
nearly 38% of 401(k) plan assets were invested in equity mutual funds. In 2013,
401(k) plan participants who invested in equity mutual funds paid an average
expense ratio of 0.58%, down from 0.63% in 2012. | | | Buyer's Market | | National Financial Partners Corp. (NFP) and
benefitRFP, Inc. have formed a strategic partnership to expand executive
benefits services and improve plan designs. The partnership will offer the
means to provide targeted recommendations for nonqualified deferred
compensation plan administration and funding providers based on a client’s
specific planning requirements, according to the two firms. | | Mercer Launches Total Wellness Campaign | | Consulting firm Mercer has launched a total
wellness education campaign, known as Mercer Benefits U, for employees whose
retirement and health plans it administers. Designed to take a holistic
approach to managing one’s health, wealth, and well-being, Mercer Benefits U features
a college-campus visual theme and app-like functionality developed especially
for mobile devices. It also offers interactive courses in three different
“schools”: The School of Retirement, School of Health, and School of Total
Wellness. | | | Market Mirror | | Major U.S. stock indices had a good
start to the week yesterday, with the Dow up 111.61 points (0.66%) at
17,055.42, the NASDAQ 24.93 points (0.56%) higher at 4,440.42, and the S&P
500 closing at 1,977.10, an increase of 9.53 points (0.48%). The Russell 2000
increased 5.69 points (0.49%) to 1,165.62, and the Wilshire 5000 gained 98.40
points (0.47%) to finish at 20,927.26.
On the NYSE, 3.2 billion shares changed
hands, with 1.7 advancing issues for every declining issue. On the NASDAQ, 2.8
billion shares traded, with a 1.6 to 1 ratio of advancers to decliners.
The price of the 10-year Treasury note was down 7/32,
bringing its yield up to 2.545%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond
decreased 19/32, increasing its yield to 3.370%.
| | | Rules & Regulators | | Retirement Plan Administration for Employees in Military | | Retirement plan sponsors should become familiar
with laws covering employees who have served, or are serving, in the military
to ensure compliance with plan administration rules, says TIAA-CREF. Rehiring
any employee can present its own set of challenges for retirement plan
administration. But, for military service member employees, plan sponsors also
have two key pieces of legislation with which they must comply: (1) the
Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA); and (2) the
Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act (HEART). Not complying with these
laws can result in regulator action. Ed Moslander, senior managing director and
head of institutional client services at TIAA-CREF, tells PLANSPONSOR that as
veterans return to work from military service, plan sponsors need to ensure
they are granted the rights and benefits they are entitled to receive. | | The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will be
presenting a free webinar about the impact of new health care benefits law on
state and local governments. The webinar will cover topics related to the
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) such as: defining an
applicable large employer; determining whether or not the entity is an
applicable large employer; when and how the employer shared responsibility rule
applies; and forms of transition relief. | | | Financial Sense | | Pensions Increase Investments in Alternatives | | Total assets managed by the top 100 alternative
investment managers globally reached $3.3 trillion in 2013, compared with $3.1
trillion in 2012, Towers Watson research finds. The Global Alternatives Survey,
conducted in conjunction with the UK’s Financial Times shows pension fund
assets represent one-third (33%) of the top 100 alternative managers’ assets,
followed by wealth managers (18%), insurance companies (9%), sovereign wealth
funds (6%), banks (3%), funds of funds (3%), and endowments and foundations
(3%). Allocations to alternative assets by pension funds now account for around
18% of all pension fund assets globally, up from 15 years ago when it was 5%,
says Brad Morrow, head of manager research, Americas, based in New York. | | | Small Talk | | ON
THIS DATE: In
1903, the newly formed Ford Motor
Company took its first order from Chicago dentist Ernst Pfenning—an $850
two-cylinder Model A automobile with a tonneau (or backseat). The car, produced
at Ford’s plant on Mack Street (now Mack Avenue) in Detroit, was delivered to
Dr. Pfenning just over a week later. In 1916,
in Seattle, Washington, Pacific Aero Products—now Boeing Co.—was
incorporated by William Boeing. In 1965,
the unmanned spacecraft Mariner 4
passed over Mars at an altitude of 6,000 feet and sent back to Earth the first
close-up images of the red planet. In 1997,
spree killer Andrew Cunanan murdered world-renowned Italian fashion designer
Gianni Versace on the steps outside his Miami mansion.
TUESDAY
TRIVIA: The plastic things on the end of shoelaces are
called aglets.
| | TRIVIAL PURSUITS: Former
President Gerald R. Ford was given a different name at birth. Do you know what
it was, or how he came to be Gerald R. Ford? | | Share the good news with a friend! Pass the Dash along – and tell your
friends/associates they can sign up for their own copy. | | News from PLANSPONSOR.com
Copyright © Asset International, Inc.,
2014.
All
rights reserved. No reproduction without
prior authorization.
|
|
| |
