October 2019

17Oct

The IMF Just Issued a Warning About Stretched Valuations, Pension Risks, and Rising Corporate Debt

As more of the world moves toward lower rates, investors, including pension funds and insurers, have pushed into riskier and more illiquid investments, stretching valuations, according to a report released Wednesday by the International Monetary Fund. Read also Pension Funds Sink Billions Into a Whole New World of Risk About 70% of economies globally have moved toward a more-accommodative monetary stance. Interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve and others have bolstered stock markets and cushioned some of the blow to global...

October 17, 2019
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17Oct

Next decade of defined contributions crucial: Research

The Thinking Ahead Institute, which is based in London, said that retirement systems around the world are on the cusp of significant change. Challenges the research identified when it comes to defined contributions include coverage, adequacy, technology, a lack of trust and a lack of engagement with participants. The research argues that a new version of defined contributions is emerging, to be characterised by hyper-customisation and integrated whole-of-life wealth management. "The system needs to move beyond its role as...

October 17, 2019
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17Oct

UK. What does the Brexit deal mean for your personal finances?

At long last, the Government has secured an exit deal with the European Union.  Prime Minister Boris Johnson said this morning he has secured a “great new deal” with the EU which “takes back control”.  There is still a long way to go before it is agreed – the details are currently not clear, the legal wording is still being worked on and the deal will need to be passed by both the EU and British parliament – but it is undoubtedly a step forward. The key benefit...

October 17, 2019
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16Oct

Increasing Decision Making Capacities of Local Governments: Mexico’s Quest for Economic Growth

By Heidi Jane Smith (Economics Professor and Public Policy Coordinator, Department of Economics, Universidad Iberoamericana) This paper examines the relationship between fiscal autonomy and a municipalities’ commitment to and the impact upon economic development activities. This article evaluates quantitatively, using a panel dataset from 1989-2014, the relationship of fiscal capacity to a city’s economic development. It tests the hypothesis that if a municipality is more fiscally autonomous in collecting their own revenue and also discretion in making their...

October 16, 2019
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16Oct

South African study shows how unhealthy ageing takes its toll on health and income

Population ageing is often associated with health-related challenges. But its effects also reach other spheres of life. In particular, an ageing population has a big impact on countries’ economies. Research shows how it can influence a country’s economic growth. And a similar effect can be found at the household level. Read also UK. Queen’s Speech: Govt announces Pensions Bill This is of greater relevance given there is a greater share of the population reaching older age across the world. This...

October 16, 2019
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16Oct

Pension schemes to benefit from PE investment guide in East Africa

The East African Venture Capital Association (EAVCA) in partnership with Financial Sector Deepening Africa (FSD Africa) and International Finance Corporation (IFC) have launched an investment guide to enable regional pension schemes to invest in Private Equity (PE) Funds. Named Private Equity Investment Guide, the objective of the tool is to deepen the understanding of Private Equity structures among Pension Fund Managers and their Trustees to unlock more investment into the asset class. The guide mainly covers three key areas...

October 16, 2019
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16Oct

Kenya. Pensions uptake low as returns increase

The country’s pension penetration remains at a 15 per cent low despite returns growing at an average 10.7 per cent annually over the past six years. According to a report by Cytonn Asset Managers the retirement benefits assets under management in the pension funds industry grew eight per cent to Sh1.2 trillion as of December 2018. The report shows fund managers are still relying on traditional, low-risk assets such as government securities and equities which cumulatively accounted for 56.7...

October 16, 2019
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16Oct

Australia. Radical changes ahead for defined contribution

Shifts for the DC organisation of tomorrow – shows that DC is increasingly becoming a post-retirement income provision vehicle, with integrated accumulation phases matched to post-retirement consumption needs. The report calls this “DC 2.0”. “The need for change has been clear for a long time. Even 10 years ago, we were talking of a version 2.0 of DC that was built around the purpose of providing income throughout retirement,” said Bob Collie, head of research at the Thinking...

October 16, 2019
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16Oct

US. So Why Are GE’s Pensions So Underfunded, Anyway?

Last week, General Electric announced the impending freeze of its pension plans to new accrual, for salaried workers and executives. And, as much as we’re accustomed to the stories of woefully-underfunded public pensions and multi-employer pensions, it’s worth taking a look at the situation at GE, and asking the question, why were GE’s plans so underfunded that they felt it necessary to take this step? (And, yes, part of the answer is simply, “everyone’s doing it” and per the...

October 16, 2019
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15Oct

U.S. pension funds took positions in blacklisted Chinese surveillance company

Some of the biggest public pensions funds in the United States have invested in one of the world’s largest purveyors of video surveillance systems that the U.S. government claims are used in wide-scale repression of the Muslim population of western China. Read also US. White House Focuses on China Stock Limits in Retirement Fund The Trump administration’s decision to put the company, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co (002415.SZ), on a blacklist last week has prompted at least two of...

October 15, 2019
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