May 2018

07May

Australia. Pensioners call for budget boost to ‘inadequate’ retirement funds

Trevor Robey and Dennice Bargh are a recently retired couple from Sydney's western suburbs. Mr Robey worked as an administrator for a private bus company, while Ms Bargh worked as a court officer for the past 17 years. They retired only a year ago, but already they believe they're struggling to make ends meet. "I don't believe that the pension is adequate enough, truly, I don't," Ms Bargh said. The basic single pension rate is $862.20 a fortnight for a single person and...

May 7, 2018
News, Slider
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07May

Ghana. Government must come out with alternative retirement plan – Prof. Bokpin

Economist and Head of Finance Department at the University of Ghana Business School, Professor Godfred Bokpin has warned of future hardships for Ghanaians if the country fails to implement alternative retirement plans. This, he believes is because the current law only provides minimum allowance for person’s who retire under the law. His comments come on the back of a recent altercation between some pensioners and the Ministry of Finance over delays in the release of their pensions for the month of...

May 7, 2018
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07May

UK. Growth in self-employment risks undermining the state pension

The rising popularity of self-employment risks undermining the sustainability of Britain’s state pension as national insurance contributions fall, new research has found. For every one million people moving from being employed to being self-employed, £2.8bn is lost annually from national insurance contributions, which fund the state pension, according to a report from pensions firm Aegon. Under reforms to the pensions system in 2016, self-employed people now receive the same state pension as employees. However, the rules about national insurance contributions were...

May 7, 2018
News, Slider
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07May

The Economist Guide To Investment Strategy 4th Edition: How to understand markets, risk, rewards and behaviour

By Peter Stanyer,‎ Stephen Satchell The classic guide for the individual investor, The Economist Guide to Investment Strategy sets out the basic - and the not-so-basic - principles for putting your wealth to work. It looks at risk, pointing out the hazards for those who wish to explore a variety of investment approaches. It also teaches the importance of sophisticated self-knowledge in finance, distilling insights from behavioural analysis as well as the principles of traditional finance. It highlights how habitual...

May 7, 2018
Books, Investing
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07May

The State of Social Safety Nets 2018

By World Bank  The State of Social Safety Nets 2018 Report examines global trends in the social safety net/social assistance coverage, spending, and program performance based on the World Bank Atlas of Social Protection Indicators of Resilience and Equity (ASPIRE) updated database. The report documents the main social safety net programs that exist globally and their use to alleviate poverty and to build shared prosperity. The 2018 report expands on the 2015 edition, both in administrative and household survey data...

May 7, 2018
Books, Pension design, System Sustainability,
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07May

The Use of Locally Imposed Selective Taxes to Fund Public Pension Liabilities

By Thad Calabrese (New York University (NYU) - Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service) This chapter examines a growing phenomenon in pension funding in which jurisdictions enact a new selective tax or fee, or increase an existing one, to reduce unfunded pension liabilities. Selective sales tax refers to a sales tax confined to a particular commodity or a limited number of commodities, such as a tax on sales of liquor, cigarettes, gasoline, or other petroleum products. Because this...

May 7, 2018
Articles, Pension design,
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07May

Poverty in Retirement: The Long-Term Impact of Rising Economic Inequality

By David W. Rasmussen (Pepper Institute on Aging and Public Policy) Income inequality is exacerbated by labor market trends that increase the demand for high skill occupations and those in low skill service occupations. This hollowing out of the middle of the income distribution means that an increasing portion of households will be less prepared for retirement as they approach age 65: they will have saved less, have diminished access to define benefit pension plans, and face smaller social security...

May 7, 2018
Aging, Articles, Labor Market,
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07May

Designing Pension Systems with Coherent Funded Private Pillars Including Issues for Notional Defined Contribution Schemes

By William Joseph Price (World Bank) This paper reviews the factors that should guide the design of private funded pensions to create a complete pension system alongside a notional defined contribution -- or public -- component. It argues that a mix of public and private pensions is the most effective option to deliver the best combination of pension outcomes. Pension design should start with a vision for five core outcomes: coverage, adequacy, sustainability, efficiency, and security. Thinking through these outcomes...

May 7, 2018
Articles, Pension design, Savings,
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04May

Chile. 58% de personas postergaría edad de jubilación con incentivo para retiro de parte de ahorros

Según una encuesta encargada por la AAFP a Criteria Research, las mujeres serían las más interesadas (60%) en retrasar su edad de jubilación. Por otro lado, sobre quién debería administrar la cotización adicional, las AFP (40%) y un ente estatal (37%) son las opciones más mencionadas. Las pensiones están entre las principales preocupaciones de las personas en Chile. Es más, entre las prioridades ciudadanas de cambios urgentes requeridos para mejorar la calidad de vida, el número 1 lo ocupa esta...

May 4, 2018
Noticias
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04May

US. Why Married Men Are So Terrible At Retirement

This isn’t an easy or surface level topic. It’s very serious and runs deep into the fabric of relationships in retirement. The fact that married men struggle with this transition is a something that plays out time and time again and needs to be addressed in a more serious manner… and it needs to start now. To begin, the first hurdle has to do with pre-retirement training. Men are not adequately prepared for everyday life in retirement, so when they...

May 4, 2018
News, Slider
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