February 2024
15Feb

U.S., U.K. delivery, ride-hailing drivers stop work on Valentine’s Day over pay, employee benefits

Thousands of ride-hailing and delivery workers in the U.S. and the U.K. went on strike on Valentine’s Day, calling for higher pay and other changes to their working conditions. In the U.S., Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. drivers planned day-long strikes and held mid-day demonstrations at airports in several cities, including Chicago, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Miami, Orlando and Tampa, according to Justice for App Workers, the group organizing the effort. Meanwhile, U.K. delivery drivers for Uber Eats, Deliveroo, Just Eat and...

February 15, 2024
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15Feb

US. Public retirement systems’ investment management expenses dip to 4-year low

Public retirement systems saw their investment management expenses drop significantly in fiscal 2023 from the prior year, reaching a four-year low, according to an annual study by the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems. In fiscal 2023, surveyed retirement systems averaged investment management expenses of 39 basis points, down from 49 basis points the year before, while administrative expenses remained steady, according to the study. A Feb. 12 news release revealing the results of the study said the four-year low...

February 15, 2024
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15Feb

Retirement income literacy lacking among older Americans

The American College of Financial Services has unveiled the findings from its 2023 Retirement Income Literacy Study, spotlighting a significant gap in retirement knowledge among older Americans. Drawing from a survey of more than 3,765 individuals ages 50 to 75, the study found a concerning lack of knowledge, with participants garnering an average score of 31% on a retirement literacy quiz. “In the U.S., with the exception of Social Security and the comparatively small number of workers with guaranteed pensions, saving...

February 15, 2024
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14Feb

US. Sustainable investing has bright future, Morningstar exec says

Sustainable investing has a bright future, as younger generations and those with long-term investing goals, such as pension funds, have expressed interest in it, Morningstar Indexes' head of ESG strategy said at the Exchange ETF conference in Miami Beach, Fla., on Feb. 13. "There's no reason to expect systematic underperformance from sustainable investments, and there's some reason to believe you might be able to get some marginal long-term benefits out of it," Morningstar Indexes' Thomas Kuh said at a panel...

February 14, 2024
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13Feb

US Corporate Pension Plans Continue to Improve Funded Status in January

Following a market rally in 2023 that boosted the funded status of corporate defined benefit plans in the U.S., that strength has continued into 2024. According to several pension trackers, the funded status of the plans continued to increase in January. The WTW Pension Index, which tracks the performance and funded status of a hypothetical 60/40 plan, rose to 108.8 in January, up 1.2% from the closing figures from 2023. WTW attributed this performance primarily to a rise in discount rates,...

February 13, 2024
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12Feb

US. Diversity kept in mind, but not a priority, among pension plans in manager hires

When hiring money managers, U.S. pension funds say they have one thing to make clear: It is their fiduciary duty to prioritize firms that can generate strong returns and mitigate risks. But there are ways that funds make their selection while promoting diversity, regardless of whether they have formal policies for hiring minority- and women-owned programs. Aside from encouraging inclusiveness within the asset management industry, considering the identity of a firm's ownership in hiring practices can help allocators create a broad...

February 12, 2024
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09Feb

US. For some pension funds, active investing is once again attractive

Passive investing has been a dominant trend in recent years, but some large U.S. pension funds are seeing more opportunities ramping up in active management. In some ways, the trend is surprising. Low-fee index funds — particularly those focused on the efficient large-cap segment of the U.S. stock market — have historically outperformed their actively managed counterparts over the mid to long term. The track record and cost efficiency of passive products have made them a great success: In 2023,...

February 9, 2024
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08Feb

US. Shell Closes $4.9B Pension Risk Transfer With Prudential

Prudential Financial Inc. announced on Wednesday it had closed a $4.9 billion pension risk transfer deal with Shell USA Inc. The transaction would be the first major pension risk transfer in the U.S. this year, following record years for the pension risk transfer market in 2022 and 2023.  “Prudential is honored to help continue meeting the retirement security needs of Shell’s retirees,” said Alexandra Hyten, head of institutional retirement strategies at Prudential, in a statement. “We are confident that our commitment...

February 8, 2024
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02Feb

US. Public Pensions Are Mixing Risky Investments with Unrealistic Predictions

More than 20 million Americans are covered by state and local government pensions. Unlike the 401(k) plans found in the private sector, these “defined benefit” plans promise to pay retirees a set amount of money every month for the rest of their lives. For most public workers, these generous programs are a cornerstone of their financial security; for many, they’re one of the main attractions of government jobs. Yet the plans, by their own reckoning, are underfunded to the tune...

February 2, 2024
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January 2024
30Jan

US. What’s the average 401(k) balance by age?

The amount of money you’ll need to retire comfortably depends on several factors, such as where you plan to live and how much you plan to spend. But experts say it’s important to save for the future now — especially because one of the main advantages of 401(k) workplace retirement plans is that your money benefits from compound returns, growing via the financial markets over time. “The sooner 401(k) participants start to save, the more realistic their retirement goals will...

January 30, 2024
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