April 2023

15 Cheapest Countries for Retirement

The Costs of Living in Retirement On average, a comfortable retirement in the USA costs an estimated $1 million. With Americans spending $50,220 annually post-retirement, 25% have already begun delaying their retirement plans. A 40-year high inflation, rising interest rates, and pandemic-led supply-chain disruptions are all notable factors causing this delay. CNBC notes that one million dollars in a retirement account two years ago are worth $120,000 less when accounted for inflation today. As a result, 77% of people have...

Swedish retirees demand fairer pensions for women

"Old ladies need more money!" a group of grey-haired women chants in front of Sweden's parliament, as their recurring protest against the country's pension system enters its 10th year. During the warmer months, members of the red-hatted "Tantpatrullen" (The Old Lady Patrol) gather every Thursday on the cobble streets of Stockholm's Old Town, right across from Sweden's parliament. They have just begun their 2023 protest season. In a country that prides itself on being a champion of feminism and gender equality,...

March 2023

The cost of living

We first took evidence on the cost of living crisis in February 2022, when inflation was forecast to peak at 7.25% in April 2022. Since then, we have seen the invasion of Ukraine compound the difficult economic picture and inflationary pressure seen internationally and domestically after the COVID-19 pandemic, and inflation now looks set to top 11% in October—the highest in 40 years. However, the context for the cost of living crisis and its impact on the poorest in...

Five steps to better pensions: Time for a new consensus

By Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association Millions more people are saving into a workplace pension due to the successes of automatic enrolment. However, ten years after Automatic Enrolment was first introduced the PLSA has undertaken a review to find opportunities to improve the retirement savings system. Our new research finds that without reform more than 50% of savers will fail to meet the retirement income targets set by the 2005 Pensions Commission. We are recommending five steps for reform: National objectives: The...

Pensions and the Nordic Welfare Model

By Torben M. Andersen Within the frame of the Nordic welfare model, pension system design has taken very different routes. While the overall aims in terms of distribution and replacement rates are similar, the division of labour between defined benefit and contribution as well as pay-as-you-go versus funded schemes differs significantly. The main characteristics of the pension systems in the Nordic countries are presented, and outcomes relating to pension adequacy in terms of poverty and replacement rates are discussed. Specific...

UK. One third of people facing a drop in retirement standards

One in three savers have moved from an expected ‘moderate’ retirement lifestyle to a ‘minimum’ lifestyle, according to analysis by Wealth Wizards. The financial planning firm analysed data from more than 40,000 users of the Wealth Wizards Pension Guidance Software as a Service (SaaS) platform and found almost one in five pensioners are not on track for the living standards they would like in retirement. Additionally, the analysis of the data gathered over the last two years found one in three...

Longevity, Health and Housing Risks Management in Retirement

By Pierre-Carl Michaud & Pascal St-Amour Annuities, long-term care insurance and reverse mortgages remain unpopular to manage longevity, medical and housing price risks after retirement. We analyze low demand using a life-cycle model structurally estimated with a unique stated-preference survey experiment of Canadian households. Low risk aversion, substitution between housing and consumption and low marginal utility when in poor health explain most of the reduced demand. Bequests motives are found to be a luxury good and play a limited role....

Why So Many Experts Consider Annuities a Win for Retirees

Do you know what type of retirement product saw sales soar 44% in 2022 — and received praise and positive publicity in the finance field as consumers saw their other retirement investments lose value? It’s not cryptocurrency! It’s not some hedge fund. Or junk bonds. It’s easily understood and won’t be seen as a fad in future years. I’ve described it as a product that “doesn’t make your retirement; it makes your retirement better.” Its technical term is single premium immediate annuity,...

Women on the front line everywhere!

In March 2023 women’s movements are playing a leading role in many countries around the world. This is neither new nor exceptional, but it should always be emphasized to show how women’s struggles are an integral part of the struggle to change, to revolutionize society, and that without women’s action society stops. In the year-long war caused by the atrocious invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops under Putin, Ukrainian women are participating in resistance in all its forms. Women serve...

Zimbabwe: NRZ Pensioners Earning U.S.$3 Monthly Pay Outs

Retired National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) workers are receiving a meagre monthly pension pay out equivalent to around US$3 per month despite decades of investing their labour into the growth of the company. Speaking to NewZimbabwe.com Wednesday on condition of anonymity, one pensioner said the National Railways of Zimbabwe Contributory Pension Fund (NRZCPF) is paying out very mean amounts which are wiped out by bank charges. "Early this year the pension pay outs were increased from around ZW$2 000 to ZW$3...