March 2026
24Mar

Longevity wake-up call for younger generations

New study shows Gen X and Millennials face rising mortality rates, signaling an urgent need for longevity-focused solutions. For decades, Americans have been living longer, but recent trends suggest that this upward march may be stalling, and for some generations, it’s moving in reverse. A new study tracking cause-of-death data from 1979 to 2023 highlights a worrying pattern: people born between 1970 and 1985 – late Gen Xers and early Millennials – are experiencing higher mortality rates than the generations...

March 24, 2026
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23Mar

US. Retirement Plan Coming Up Short? Here’s How to Buy Yourself More Time

On this episode of The Long View, Emily Guy Birken, author and retirement expert, discusses key steps for investors as they get closer to retirement, how Social Security can help with retirement shortfalls, and lessons from her latest book, The Five Years Before You Retire. Here are a few excerpts from Guy Birken’s conversation with Morningstar’s Christine Benz and Amy Arnott. How to Bridge a Retirement Shortfall Amy Arnott: What if you find yourself in a situation where you’re approaching retirement and it looks like you really won’t have enough to...

March 23, 2026
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February 2026
24Feb

U.K. Pension savers increasingly turning to AI when starting retirement planning

Pension savers are increasingly turning to artificial intelligence (AI), rather than financial guidance or advice websites, to begin their retirement planning, according to PensionBee. The pension provider analysed data on Google keyword searches and traffic to free advice websites, and found that AI was increasingly satisfying the typical, early-stage needs of pension holders when they start to consider pension and retirement options. It noted that the rise of ‘AI Overviews’ may be reducing the need to go direct-to-source for important information...

February 24, 2026
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24Feb

US. Retirement Asset Ownership Is Widespread Among Gig-Worker Households

As the gig economy has grown, so too has concern that a workforce increasingly made up of freelancers, independent contractors, and app-based workers is falling through the cracks of the US retirement system. Because gig workers can sometimes lack access to employer-sponsored plans, they are often portrayed as disengaged from long-term savings and at a heightened risk of financial insecurity in retirement. These assumptions have shaped policy debates, media coverage, and calls for reform, often treating gig work itself...

February 24, 2026
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23Feb

UK. Research finds gap between pension holders’ investment beliefs and knowledge

Pension holders believe it is important to know where their pension is invested but few actually know what their money is funding, research from Nest Pensions has shown. The workplace pension scheme found that 83 per cent of UK pension savers thought it was important to understand where they were invested, but just 24 per cent actually knew. Nest stated that this gap mattered as people missed the fact their pension was “one of the most powerful” financial tools they have...

February 23, 2026
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23Feb

US. How One Extra Dollar of Income Can Cost You Thousands in Retirement

As a retiree, any extra income probably feels welcome. But unfortunately for some, a seemingly minor increase in reported income can ripple through your finances, affecting not just your tax return but also your Medicare premiums. If you're on Medicare, the Income Related Monthly Adjustment Amount (IRMAA) means that crossing an income threshold by even one dollar can trigger higher Medicare Part B and Part D premiums. Understanding how IRMAA works is essential — especially when a single dollar can make a difference....

February 23, 2026
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20Feb

The Shift from Traditional Pensions to 401(k)s: Retirement Risks and the Timing of Retirement

By Rosemary Kaiser, Xiaohui sun & Yang Xuan U.S. retirement plans have shifted sharply from defined benefit to defined contribution setups. How has this change affected retirement and savings behavior? We develop a quantitative life-cycle model where retirement plans differ in their exposure to longevity and investment risk. Holding the present-value cost of benefits fixed, these differences generate distinct savings and retirement incentives across plan types. The model replicates observed differences in savings and retirement behavior and implies that the...

February 20, 2026
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19Feb

Rethinking Retirement Planning for a 100-Year Life

With Canadians living longer than ever, experts say that retirement planning has to account for decades, not years. Starting early and staying invested are critical to building a strong financial cushion for one’s later years. Younger Canadians are using a diverse range of investments, including mutual funds, ETFs, and alternatives. Canadians are living longer than ever, which is why experts say that younger investors should plan for their savings to last decades, not years, in retirement. Average life expectancy for Canadians has...

February 19, 2026
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18Feb

UK workers pessimistic about retirement prospects

Workers in the UK are optimistic about all aspects of their personal and financial lives, except their plans for retirement, analysis from Fidelity International has revealed. Fidelity’s Global Sentiment Survey showed that overall levels of optimism among UK employees had risen to 54 per cent in 2025, up from 52 per cent in 2024 and 48 per cent in 2023. At least 50 per cent of respondents rated each aspect of their finances, working lives, and health as ‘good’, other than retirement planning. Just...

February 18, 2026
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13Feb

New Life Expectancy Data Reveals Surprising Impact on Retirement Plans

What’s Changed About Life Expectancy—and Why It Matters People are living longer nowadays. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the average life expectancy was 75.8 years for males, 81.1 years for females, and the average for both sexes is 78.4 years in 2023.1 But these averages don’t tell the whole story. Medical advances mean more people are living into their late 80s and 90s than ever before.2 A longer life means more years in retirement, and that shift...

February 13, 2026
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