| | Benefit Briefs | | Are Health Care Exchanges the Answer for Employers? | | Retail health insurance marketplaces, known as
exchanges, are dramatically changing the employer benefits environment,
according to a report from PwC’s Health Research Institute (HRI). Employers
faced with rising costs and regulatory demands are moving away from the benefit
business, pushing individual consumers to take on new responsibility for their
own health insurance, HRI says. This will fuel significant growth of health
exchanges over the next decade. “Employers are expressing significant interest
in private exchanges, but taking the time to evaluate the various exchange
offerings,” says Barbara Gniewek, principal, PwC’s Human Resource Services
practice. The report offers considerations for employers.Read more > | | When 401(k) plan participants traded their
investments in August, they favored fixed income funds over equity funds for
65% of the trading days, according to Aon Hewitt. This was a reversal from July
when more trading days favored equity funds, but consistent with the rest of
2014. Aon Hewitt’s 401(k) Index showed transfer activity moved away from
diversified equities (equity assets excluding company stock) by $78 million
(0.05%) in August. Stable value/GIC funds received the most inflows with $61
million (28%), while bond funds took in $40 million (19%) and money market
funds received $32 million (15%).Read more > | | | Buyer's Market | | Murphy to Lead Retirement at Great-West | | Edmund F. Murphy III has been named president of
Great-West Financial’s combined retirement organization, integrating the
businesses of Great-West Financial, Putnam Investments and J.P. Morgan
Retirement Plan Services. Earlier this year, Great-West announced it would be
consolidating the retirement plan business of Putnam and Great-West, and then acquired
the J.P. Morgan Retirement Plan Services large-market recordkeeping business. Murphy,
who was most recently head of Defined Contribution at Putnam, is now based in
Denver and reports to Robert L. Reynolds, president and chief executive officer
of Great-West Financial.Read more > | | Invesco PowerShares Capital Management, LLC
listed the PowerShares LadderRite 0-5 Year Corporate Bond Portfolio (LDRI) on
the NASDAQ. “In today’s low-rate environment, investors continue to be wary of
interest rate risk in their pursuit of investment income,” says Dan Draper,
Invesco PowerShares’ global head of ETFs. ”LDRI provides what we view as a more
intelligent solution to help investors address this ongoing challenge compared
to many existing fixed-income solutions in the marketplace.”Read more > | | USI Offers Planning with Guaranteed Income Solution | | The retirement and benefit consulting firm USI
Consulting Group has begun offering retirement planning and consulting services
that include guaranteed lifetime income solutions for defined contribution (DC)
plan participants. USI Consulting Group teamed with Ash Brokerage, a national
wholesaler of financial products and services, to offer the Direct Solutions
program and USI Annuity retirement solutions, which the firm says will help
plan participants improve retirement income planning. The USI Annuity program
provides advanced planning, personalized support, customized solutions and
access to financial products to address the lifetime income needs of retiring
participants.Read more > | | | Economic Events | | The U.S.
Census Bureau announced that July sales of merchant wholesalers, except
manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal
variations and trading-day differences but not for price changes, were $458.6
billion, up 0.7% from the revised June level and up 7.5% from the July 2013
level. Total inventories of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales
branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal variations but not for
price changes, were $533.8 billion at the end of July, up 0.1% from the revised
June level and up 7.9% from the July 2013 level.
Private industry employers spent an average of $30.11
per hour worked for employee compensation in June, according to the Bureau of
Labor Statistics. Wages and salaries averaged $21.02 and benefits averaged
$9.09, of which retirement and savings plans averaged $1.23 per hour worked.
| | | Market Mirror | | The Dow was up 54.84 points (0.32%)
Wednesday at 17,068.71, while the NASDAQ climbed 34.24 points (0.75%) to
4,586.52, and the S&P 500 increased 7.25 points (0.36%) to 1,995.69. The
Russell 2000 gained 6.49 points (0.56%) to finish at 1,164.99, and the Wilshire
5000 closed 76.52 points (0.36%) higher at 21,151.84.
On the NYSE, 3.2 billion shares traded,
with a slight lead for advancers. On the NASDAQ, 2.8 billion shares changed
hands, with 1.5 advancing issues for every declining issue.
The price of the 10-year Treasury note was down 10/32,
bringing its yield up to 2.541%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond fell
23/32, increasing its yield to 3.273%.
| | | Financial Sense | | Regulations Hindering Wider Use of Alternatives | | Regulation may be slowing the push for
alternative investments by retirement plans and other institutional investors,
Cerulli Associates finds. According to Cerulli’s September 2014 issue of “The
Cerulli Edge – U.S. Edition,” increased allocations in institutional channels
such as defined benefit (DB) pension plans and endowments, expectations for
greater use among financial advisers, and interest within defined contribution
(DC) plans are increasing the role of alternative investments. However, Michele
Guiditta, associate director at Cerulli, says, “The percentage of managers that
rate revenue potential as a driver of interest in alternative assets dropped to
83% in 2014 from 93% in 2013. This decline can partially be attributed to
heightened regulation in increasing barriers to entry.”Read more > | | Lower-Rated Bonds May Improve LDI Strategy | | BBB-rated corporate credits may provide
diversification, incrementally improved returns and other benefits to U.S.
corporate defined benefit (DB) plans that typically invest in A and
higher-rated securities in their LDI strategies, according to a white paper
from Standish Mellon Asset Management Company LLC, fixed income specialist for
BNY Mellon. “BBBs are still investment-grade securities, for those concerned about
credit quality,” Andrew Catalan, managing director and senior portfolio manager
for Standish in Boston, and an author of the report, tells PLANSPONSOR. “As you
move down the rating scale, the increase in the spread over Treasuries, or
overall yield, is itself enticing, but we recognize there is concern about
additional risk,” he says. “If you can select BBBs by analyzing the company and
coming up with the conclusion the investments will remain investment grade or
even be upgraded, you have a chance to harvest the returns which will be higher
now than that of higher rated corporate bonds.”Read more > | | | Sponsored message from Vanguard | How America Saves 2014
Did you know the median account balance rose by 182% among continuous participants with a balance in both December 2008 and December 2013? Click here to learn more.Read more > | | | Small Talk | | ON THIS DATE: In
1609, explorer Henry Hudson sailed
into New York harbor and discovered Manhattan Island and the Hudson River. In 1789, Alexander Hamilton was appointed
by U.S. President George Washington to be the first secretary of the treasury. In
1936, Boulder Dam in Nevada was
dedicated by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt by turning on the dam’s first
hydroelectric generator. The dam is now called Hoover Dam. In 1954, the Miss America beauty pageant
made its network TV debut on ABC. Miss California, Lee Ann Meriwether, was the
winner. In 1967, the Carol Burnett
Show premiered on CBS. In 1974, “Little House On The Prairie” made
its television debut. In 1971, Donny
Osmond had the No. 1 hit on the U.S. pop charts with “Go Away Little
Girl” In 1985, Cincinnati Reds
player-manager Pete Rose made the 4,192nd hit of his career, breaking Ty Cobb’s
major league record for career hits. In 1997,
John Lee Hooker received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2001, in the U.S., four airliners were
hijacked and were intentionally crashed. Two airliners hit the World Trade
Center, which collapsed shortly after, in New York City. One airliner hit the
Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. Another airliner crashed into a field in
Pennsylvania. About 3,000 people were killed. | | SURVEY SAYS: There
have been many news reports lately about hackers obtaining personal information
from store systems or from the “Cloud.” Data breaches can occur by theft or
loss of files or laptops, hackers, or data accidentally made public. I have
been a victim once of a data breach against my health plan provider. This week,
I’d like to know, have you been the victim of a data breach, and what
activities do you do online or via your mobile phone? You may respond to this
week’s survey by 6 p.m. Pacific time today.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 > | | News from PLANSPONSOR.com
Copyright © Asset International, Inc.,
2014.
All
rights reserved. No reproduction without
prior authorization.
|
|
| |
