| Retiring CEO of Ontario Teachers pension fund foresees challenges ...
TORONTO (CP) - Claude Lamoureux, who is retiring as president and chief executive of Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan after an illustrious career leading one of Canada's largest investment funds, warned Friday that some hard choices lay ahead. "We must balance the presence with the future. We must ensure that what members put into the plan, and what members get out of the plan, is fair for all generations for teachers," Lamoureux said in a speech at the plan's annual meeting. Quoting Warren Buffett, Lamoureaux said that the legendary American financier had written that public pension plans "can defer the need for increased taxes by using investment assumptions that are likely to be out of reach. . . . .
Bruce Baird announces retirement
The abrupt decision by the 65-year-old former state minister to vacate his safe seat of Cook, in Sydney's south, has set in train a robust preselection battle, The Australian newspaper reports. After 20 years in state and federal politics, Mr Baird said he was ready to "pass the baton" to his son Mike, who won the state seat of Manly, on Sydney's northern beaches, at last month's NSW election. "I have been thinking about (retiring) for the past year," Mr Baird told the newspaper. "I think the government will be returned (but) we may lose a bit of bark." Mr Baird said one of his few regrets was failing to reach ministerial rank in the Howard Government. Former Tourism Australia boss Scott Morrison, who is also a former NSW state director of the Liberal Party - is the early frontrunner in the race to win pre-selection for Cook, the newspaper said.
Secure in Social Security?
Some things seem to have been around so long that we just take them for granted. When it comes to Social Security, it seems we expect to get those checks but very few of us know exactly what we've got coming to us and when. One finding of a recent survey into retirement attitudes by the Employee Benefit Research Institute was that only 18% of workers can correctly identify the age at which they'll be able to claim their full retirement benefits. That could mean a very unhappy realization for the half of workers who think they'll be eligible sooner than they actually will. To avoid any rude surprises when you call up the Social Security Administration the day of your retirement party, here are the basics that every worker should keep in mind. Retirement age
To be eligible for your full Social Security retirement benefits, you have to start claiming them when Social Security declares that you've reached your full retirement age.
Prime Minister wants to reduce pension cuts
Prime Minister and leader of the Independence Party Geir H. Haarde said in a meeting in Reykjavík yesterday that he wants to reduce cuts in the social security system from 40 to 35 percent to secure minimum pension for everyone. Haarde also announced that he believed people older than 70 should be able to work for a normal salary without the Social Security Administration reducing their pension, as Morgunbladid reports. “These individuals have already delivered their contribution to society," Haarde said. “I also believe it is natural for the state to secure a minimum pension from the pension fund for everyone." Haarde suggested the minimum could be ISK 25,000 (USD 380, EUR 281) per month additionally to payments from the Social Security Administration.
UBS Global Asset Management US Pension Fund Fitness Tracker Finds ...
CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--UBS Global Asset Management today announced that its US Pension Fund Fitness Tracker, a quarterly estimate of the overall health of a typical US defined benefit pension plan, finds that pension plan funding ratios went on a wild ride, caused by volatility in both equity markets and interest rates. The typical pension fund started 2007 with a funding ratio of approximately 103% and ended the quarter at a slightly improved funding ratio of approximately 105%. "While the overall numbers were positive, the first quarter of 2007 points out an area of concern for pension managers: namely, significant funding ratio volatility due to interest rate swings, and plans' over-reliance on equity market risk," said Aaron Meder, UBS Global Asset Management's Head of Asset Liability Investment Solutions in the Americas.
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