| | Benefits & Administration | | Retired Americans Need More Savings | | Although the total percentage of adults surveyed
by the Robert Morris University Polling Institute who say they are “very” or
“somewhat” concerned about their financial security upon retirement has
decreased since February, the percentage saying they are “very” concerned
increased from 37.6% to 42.3%. Among the retired survey respondents, just 20%
say they have saved enough.Read more > | | SIFMA Speaks Out Against State-Run Retirement Plans | | The Securities Industry and Financial Markets
Association (SIFMA) says it is committed to increasing retirement plan coverage
for Americans; however, the creation of a state-run retirement plan for
private-sector employees is not the most effective way to do so. The group says
the private sector already offers a variety of retirement savings options,
including fairly priced 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans, 401(a) plans, 457(b) plans,
SIMPLE IRAs, SEP IRAs, and traditional IRAs. In a position statement, SIFMA
outlined problems it sees with the creation of state-run plans.Read more > |
|
|
|
| | Products, Deals and People | | Transamerica Unveils 401(k) for Small Employers | | The newly released Transamerica FastTrack
Retirement Plan seeks to deliver down market the participant support services
more commonly available for large and mega-sized plans. Transamerica says the
base of the FastTrack program is the delivery of clear savings strategies and
personalized online progress reports for defined contribution (DC) retirement
plan participants. According to the firm, employers can take advantage of the new
retirement plan program starting with a commitment of $50,000 in first-year
deposits or plan assets.Read more > | | | Market Mirror | U.S. stock
indices ended lower Monday as increased odds of a Federal Reserve rate hike in
December, following a surprisingly strong jobs report last week, weighed on
investors’ sentiment, according to MarketWatch. The Dow decreased 179.85 points
(1.00%) to 17,730.48, the NASDAQ closed 51.82 points (1.01%) lower at 5,095.30,
and the S&P 500 was down 19.45 points (0.93%) at 2,079.75. The Russell 2000
fell 15.32 points (1.28%) to 1,184.43, and the Wilshire 5000 lost 220.20 points
(1.01%) to finish at 21,645.04.
On the NYSE,
3.2 billion shares traded, with declining issues outnumbering advancing issues
nearly 4 to 1. On the NASDAQ, 2.7 billion shares changed hands, with a more
than 2 to 1 lead for decliners.
The price of the 10-year Treasury note decreased 8/32,
bringing its yield up to 2.352%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond fell
20/32, increasing its yield to 3.119%.
| | | Compliance | | Duty to Monitor Fiduciaries Doesn’t Include Duty to Inform | | A federal judge has found that several
defendants named in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) lawsuit
are not fiduciaries and has dismissed some claims that BP failed to monitor
fiduciaries. The lawsuit had previously been dismissed based on the Moench
presumption of prudence for fiduciaries of retirement plans in which company
stock is offered as an investment. However, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals revived the lawsuit after the Supreme Court ruling in Fifth Third Bank v. Dudenhoeffer that
fiduciaries do not have a presumption of prudence.Read more > | | Another Challenge to the DOL Fiduciary Rule | | In the wake of approval of a House bill to delay
the fiduciary proposal of the Department of Labor (DOL), four Republican and
Democratic lawmakers outlined a series of seven legislative principles they
believe must govern retirement advice and retirement advisers. The
congressional effort is the latest shot against the DOL’s measure, and the
stated bipartisan concern is that the rule will make it difficult for low- and
middle-income families to access financial advice so they can adequately plan
for retirement.Read more > | | | Investing | | Institutional assets tracked by the Wilshire
Trust Universe Comparison Service (TUCS) saw a median return of -4.53% in the
third quarter—the worst quarterly performance in four years and the first
back-to-back losing quarters since the quarter ending March 31, 2009. “Global
equity returns weighed heavily on the median returns for all plan types in the
third quarter,” Robert J. Waid, managing director at Wilshire Associates, says.Read more > | | | Small Talk | | ON THIS DATE: In
1775, the U.S. Marines were
organized under authority of the Continental Congress. Although, the Marines
went out of existence after the end of the Revolutionary War in April of 1783,
and were formally re-established on July 11, 1798, November 10 is observed as
the birth date of the United States Marine Corps. In 1919, the American Legion held its first national convention, in
Minneapolis, Minnesota. In 1951, direct-dial,
coast-to-coast telephone service began when Mayor M. Leslie Denning of
Englewood, New Jersey, called his counterpart in Alameda, California. In 1954, the Iwo Jima Memorial was
dedicated in Arlington, Virginia. In 1969,
“Sesame Street” made its debut on PBS. In 1970, the Great Wall of China opened for tourism. In 1975, the Edmund Fitzgerald, an ore-hauling ship, and its crew of 29 vanished
during a storm in Lake Superior. In 1982,
in Washington, D.C., the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was opened to visitors. In 1993, the U.S. House of Representatives
passed the Brady Bill, which called for a five-day waiting period for handgun
purchases. In 1999, Ted Danson received
a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2004,
Yusuf Islam (formerly known as Cat Stevens) was awarded the “Man for
Peace” prize in Rome at the opening of a meeting of Nobel Peace Prize
laureates. | | TRIVIAL PURSUITS: The
grandnephew of a well-known, former European ruler was responsible for
establishing the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the U.S. Who
established the FBI, and who was his great uncle?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 > |
|
