March 2020
03Mar

US. On Social Security benefits, Biden just came around to the increases Sanders has backed for decades

By Mark Weisbrot The biggest demographic divide in the current Democratic primary battle for president is not by gender or race, but by age. This is especially true if we accept the view of some analysts that the race is looking like a two-person contest between front-runner Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden. In a recent national poll from Survey USA, Sanders showed a commanding lead among younger voters (age 18-34), with 47% to Biden’s 13%. But among senior citizens (65+), Biden...

March 3, 2020
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02Mar

Macron Bypasses Lawmakers to Pass France Pension Overhaul

French President Emmanuel Macron moved Saturday to pass his pension overhaul without a vote in the legislature, seeking to brush aside tens of thousands of amendments filed by opposition lawmakers to slow debate. “It is clear that a discussion on the merits was never truly able to take place” in the legislature, Prime Minister Édouard Philippe said, invoking an article of the French constitution allowing the executive branch to bypass the legislature. “I deeply regret it.” The move...

March 2, 2020
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02Mar

Argentinean House of Deputies approves changes to privileged pensions

After a heated debate between the ruling party and the opposition, the Argentinean House of Deputies passed a draft bill to modify the pension system for judges and diplomats. Although the voting resulted in 129 votes in favor and none against, the legislative debates were heated. The bench of Juntos por el Cambio denounced 'irregularities' to gather the necessary quorum to debate the draft bill, due to the presence of lawmaker Daniel Scioli, who made it clear that he...

March 2, 2020
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02Mar

Coronavirus fears wipe £200bn off UK firms’ value

London's FTSE 100 share index has seen one of its worst weeks since the depths of the financial crisis in 2008 as markets continue to reel from the impact of the coronavirus. Shares have shed almost 13% of their value, wiping £210bn from the value of companies on the index. Investors are worried after a surge in the number of companies warning about the impact of the outbreak on firms. US markets are also in the red, with markets...

March 2, 2020
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02Mar

New Zealand. Reverse mortgages boom as pensioners opt to put retirement on the house

Low interest rates and high house prices are prompting more retirees to take out a reverse mortgage against their homes. Reverse mortgages - primarily offered in New Zealand by Heartland Bank - allow people to borrow a sum of money against their houses. They do not have to make any repayments until the house is sold. But interest accrues and compounds while the loan is not being repaid, so the amount that finally falls due can be a lot...

March 2, 2020
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February 2020

28Feb

Greek parliament approves pension bill

Greece’s parliament on Thursday approved a pension bill that introduces more flexibility for the self-employed over contributions and incentives to stay working longer on a promise of higher pensions. The new framework, that also creates a digital social security registry, was approved by a majority of lawmakers in the 300-seat parliament. Read also Greece. Parliament opens debate on new social security bill The conservative government says workers and employers stand to benefit from the reforms, which are intended to safeguard the system's...

February 28, 2020
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28Feb

UK. Pensions take hit as FTSE loses £152billion in four days due to coronavirus

PENSION savings took a battering yesterday after billions of pounds were wiped off the stock market in the wake of the growing coronavirus outbreak. The London Stock Exchange dropped to a new 13-month low as the spread of Covid-19 hit markets around the world and traders warned that it could lead to “anaemic global growth”.  The FTSE 100 blue-chip index has lost £152billion in the past four days – a fall of 8.2 percent so far this week, shedding £62billion yesterday. It...

February 28, 2020
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28Feb

Nigeria. Investing pension funds: Worries, prospects by stakeholders

Just before the federal government decided to step down borrowing from the dormant pension fund, reactions ranging from worries to expectations continued to trail the plan by government to utilise N2 trillion of the current N10 trillion available pension fund in developing infrastructure through the creation of products that Pension Fund Administrators (PFA) would be attracted to invest in. The government’s plan is aimed at improving infrastructure such as railway, road, electricity, among others, while also creating areas of opportunities...

February 28, 2020
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27Feb

Coronavirus, Global Aging & How Future Contagions May Affect Life In Retirement

The Novel Coronavirus is spreading. So is fear. Despite our alleged rational, technologically-advanced, and informed era – fear changes everything. Unfortunately, the fear factor around the current and future global contagions is likely to grow exponentially and is likely to disproportionately affect the lives and wellbeing of older people. News of the Coronavirus has spread far ahead of the contagion itself. Nearly every news source has headlined the virus. As of this writing, nearly 800 million hits can...

February 27, 2020
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27Feb

France shows slow progress of pension reform in parliament, raising concerns of Macron imposing it by decree

Discussions in France's National Assembly on the pension reform bill are continuing this Wednesday amid tensions delaying the progress of debates, marked by the opposition's rejection of the bill. Since February 17, the government initiative to establish a universal points-based system is on the daily agenda of the National Assembly. The mechanism used in the sessions by France Insoumise members and communists has been to introduce over 30,000 amendments in order to obstruct the bill, which is one of...

February 27, 2020
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