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| Market Mirror | |
Yesterday, the Dow was up 26.32 points (0.14%) at 18,298.88, the NASDAQ gained 27.64 points (0.55%) to finish at 5,078.44, and the S&P 500 increased 6.39 points (0.30%) to 2,129.12. The Russell 2000 climbed 13.57 points (1.09%) to 1,257.52, and the Wilshire 5000 closed 89.85 points (0.40%) higher at 22,492.02. On the NYSE, 3.2 billion shares traded, with a 1.2 to 1 ratio of advancers to decliners. On the NASDAQ, 2.8 billion shares changed hands, with 1.8 advancing issues for every declining issue. The price of the 10-year Treasury note decreased 25/32, bringing its yield up to 2.234%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond fell 1 29/32, increasing its yield to 3.026%. | |
| Compliance | |
| DOL Extends Fiduciary Comment Period | |
| The comment period for the fiduciary proposal is being stretched out for another 15 days, the Department of Labor (DOL) said in a statement. In its memo, the DOL reminds the industry that a public hearing will take place within 30 days of the end of the comment period. Following the hearing, the comment period reopens for an unspecified amount of time—estimated at two weeks.Read more > | |
| High Court Reaches Decision in Tibble Fee Case | |
| A decision from the Supreme Court of the United States seems to solidify the ongoing “duty to monitor” investments as a fiduciary duty that is separate and distinct from the duty to exercise prudence in selecting investments for use on a defined contribution plan investment menu. The decision is the latest chapter in the long-running dispute between utility company Edison International and participants/beneficiaries in the Edison 401(k) Savings Plan. The initial suit was filed in 2007, when petitioners argued that Edison International had violated its fiduciary duties with respect to three mutual funds added to the plan in 1999 and three mutual funds added to the plan in 2002. In short, the investments in question were offered to the plan participants as higher-priced retail share classes when cheaper institutional share classes could easily have been obtained.Read more > | |
| Investment Manager Allowed to Sue over Oral Agreement | |
| A California state appellate court found allegations supported an investment manager’s claim that it had entered into an oral agreement with the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS). A client alert from law firm Reed Smith says the case “provides an important warning to plan fiduciaries and their investment staff: Be careful what you say when discussing investment opportunities with managers, especially those incumbents with whom you already have a contractual relationship.”Read more > | |
| From the Magazine | |
| When a plan participant exits your company, a few different things could happen with his defined contribution (DC) account; some are decided by him and some by the plan. If he chooses to move his money, there is little the plan sponsor needs to do. However, if he leaves his money in the plan, there are implications for the plan sponsor, and these vary according to the amount of assets in the participant’s account. Plan committees, too, have choices about what to do with the accounts, and each choice can likewise affect your plan.Read more > | |
| Do You Need a Retirement Plan Adviser? | |
| Retirement plan advisers can be invaluable in helping sponsors create a retirement plan that reaches its goals. Skilled advisers bring experience in investment selection and analysis, as well as the knowledge to help sponsors run their plans professionally and efficiently. Advisers can help with the formation of a retirement plan committee and investment policy statement (IPS), for example.Read more > | |
| Investing | |
| Bond exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are taking on an increasingly vital role in institutional portfolios as regulations have forced global bond dealers to reduce their inventories and market-making activities. Regulations have sapped liquidity from the bond markets, according to the results of a new study, “Bond Market Challenges Continue to Drive Demand for Fixed-Income ETFs,” from Greenwich Associates. Meanwhile, historically low interest rates are forcing investors to search for yield, while simultaneously preparing for a long-expected pick-up in rates and volatility.Read more > | |
| Small Talk | |
ON THIS DATE: In 1608, the Protestant states formed the Evangelical Union of Lutherans and Calvinists. In 1643, delegates from four New England colonies met in Boston to form a confederation. In 1857, the electric fire alarm system was patented by William F. Channing and Moses G. Farmer. In 1935, T.E. Lawrence “Lawrence of Arabia” died from injuries in a motorcycle crash in England. In 1962, Marilyn Monroe performed a sultry rendition of “Happy Birthday” for U.S. President John F. Kennedy. The event was a fund-raiser at New York’s Madison Square Garden. In 1992, U.S. Vice President Dan Quayle criticized the CBS sitcom “Murphy Brown” for having its title character decide to bear a child out of wedlock. In 1992, the 27th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution went into effect. The amendment prohibits Congress from giving itself midterm pay raises. In 2007, Smart launched a U.S. road show to introduce its microcar.
TUESDAY TRIVIA: In medieval times, bed bugs were chiefly a problem for wealthy people, who tended to have the warmest homes. | |
| TRIVIAL PURSUITS: Who provided the voice of the character Shaggy in the original animated TV show “Scooby-Doo?”Read more > | |
| Share the good news with a friend! Pass the Dash 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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