November 2020

10Nov

Risk Dashboard: European insurers slightly less exposed to risks compared to the beginning of COVID-19 outbreak but concerns remain

Today the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) published its updated Risk Dashboard based on the second quarter of 2020 Solvency II data. The results show that the risk exposures of the European Union insurance sector slightly reduced, compared to July risk assessment. Insurers are particularly exposed to very high levels of macro risk, while market, credit, profitability and solvency risks decreased to medium level. However, the risk assessment does not account for the outbreak of the second...

November 10, 2020
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09Nov

75% of Aussies support 12% superannuation guarantee increase

An overwhelming majority of Australians support lifting the superannuation guarantee to 12% despite Reserve Bank modelling revealing that doing so will shrink wages growth. Three in four Australians say they support increasing the super guarantee to 12%, according to a nationwide survey conducted by the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA). Only 12% of the 1,375 people surveyed said they think the super guarantee rate should remain unchanged at 9.5%. The superannuation guarantee is the minimum amount your...

November 9, 2020
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06Nov

How the pandemic is changing what retirement means to consumers: Survey

COVID-19 is having a fundamental impact on retirement, according to a study by Principal. One in five respondents said the effects of the pandemic were “changing the definition of retirement,” including 23% of people who were already retired. COVID-19 is having a fundamental impact on retirement, according to a study by Principal. One in five respondents said the effects of the pandemic were “changing the definition of retirement,” including 23% of people who were already retired. The study highlights...

November 6, 2020
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06Nov

COVID-19 in Latin America: a humanitarian crisis

Latin America has some of the highest COVID-19 death rates in the world. Why? For outsiders, much of the discussion of COVID-19 in Latin America has focused on Brazil and the errors of President Jair Bolsonaro. But the region as a whole is facing a humanitarian crisis borne out of political instability, corruption, social unrest, fragile health systems, and perhaps most importantly, longstanding and pervasive inequality—in income, health care, and education—which has been woven into the social and...

November 6, 2020
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04Nov

Pace of outsourced Asia-Pacific assets to slow, report says

Assets outsourced to external money managers by institutional investors in the Asia-Pacific region are set to grow at an annualized rate of 9% over the five years through 2024, down from 12% over the five years through 2019, according to a report by fintech firm Broadridge Financial Solutions. The slowdown is partly in response to the fallout from COVID-19, including moves by some retirement systems in the region to allow members to draw down their retirement savings to get...

November 4, 2020
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04Nov

Milliman expands Pension Buyout Index to include competitive pricing rate, which drops to 100.2% in September

Milliman, Inc., a premier global consulting and actuarial firm, today announced the latest results of its Milliman Pension Buyout Index (MPBI). As the Pension Risk Transfer (PRT) market continues to grow, it has become increasingly important to monitor the annuity market for plan sponsors that are considering transferring retiree pension obligations to an insurer. Read also Retirement Saving Is Hard Even For Those Who Can Afford It While we continue to analyze annuity purchase rates from all insurers, starting this...

November 4, 2020
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03Nov

UK. Pensions risk transfer market resilient against Covid-19

The UK pensions risk transfer market has so far shown remarkable resilience to the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Although market conditions may mean some schemes will be further away from being able to de-risk than they were before the pandemic, the market remains busy and others will still be in a position to proceed with planned risk transfer activity. We can also expect to see a greater volume of forced transfer activity reaching the market in the...

November 3, 2020
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03Nov

Retirement Saving Is Hard Even For Those Who Can Afford It

Covid-19 has thrown a wrench in retirement planning. Rising unemployment, a volatile stock market and economic uncertainty are jeopardizing the ability of many families to plan for the future. However, even before the pandemic, saving for retirement was not easy. According to a U.S. Federal Reserve report from 2018, one in four non-retired households had no retirement savings at all, and more than 40% of non-retired adults said their retirement savings were not on track. Even for those households...

November 3, 2020
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October 2020

30Oct

How are Japanese corporate funds adapting to global economic challenges

Since 2016, a Japanese publication for institutional investors, AL-IN, has periodical surveyed Japanese corporate pension funds to determine what products best serve them as they confront structural and market changes. The 2018 edition of the survey found pension funds preparing for a domestic economic downturn. Income gains were already slack and pension funds sought bond-related and low-liquidity assets to cover the shortfall. Since then, investment and financial markets have been defined by the U.S. Federal Reserve’s shift in monetary...

October 30, 2020
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30Oct

Equity returns fuel Q3 Canadian pension fund returns

Strong global equity markets continue to augment pension plan returns with Canadian defined benefit plans returning 3.2 percent for the third quarter, according to the Northern Trust Canada Universe. The Northern Trust Canada Universe tracks the performance of Canadian institutional investment plans that subscribe to performance measurement services as part of Northern Trust’s asset service offerings. Overall, equity markets navigated pockets of volatility, closing the quarter in positive territory, while financial markets appeared to shrug off fears perpetuated by...

October 30, 2020
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