Boosting Yields Seen as One Path to Driving Greater Use of Stable Value
After decades of declining interest rates, yield is tough to come by in the fixed-income markets. The stable value sector is no exception; it invests primarily in high-quality intermediate-term bonds, a corner of the market where yields over the past year have hovered well below 2%. But boosting yield is not impossible.
Experts See More Room for Stable Value in DC Plan Innovation
The defined contribution retirement plan market has seen some notable innovations over the past decade and a half. Automatic enrollment of participants and automatic escalation of participant contributions have boosted plan participation and savings rates. The advent of qualified default investment alternatives (QDIAs) has led to the mushrooming popularity of target-date funds, making it easier for plan participants to benefit from broadly diversified portfolios aligned with their investment horizon. But plan evolution is not over, according to a trio of experts who spoke at the SVIA’s 2021 Fall Forum in October. They see opportunity for the retirement industry to find new ways to help retirees convert a lifetime of savings into a steady stream of income in retirement.
New York Life Investments Strategist Optimistic on Economy and Financial Markets
It’s easy to find reasons to be pessimistic about the economy and the financial markets right now. Global commerce is grinding slowly in some sectors, hamstrung by labor shortages and snarled supply chains in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Energy prices have shot up. In the U.S., inflation broadly is on the rise, as are government spending and the federal debt. Those concerns notwithstanding, economist Lauren Goodwin, director of portfolio strategy for New York Life Investments Multi-Asset Solutions team, says her organization has a constructive view of the global economy and the financial markets.
Geopolitics Expert Says World “More Dangerous” Than Any Other Time in Past 30 Years
The world is full of geopolitical risks—a belligerent North Korea with nuclear aspirations, China and its willingness to break international conventions to become a dominant global economic and military force, Russia’s expansionist-minded president … the list can grow quite lengthy.
Income and Annuities: A New Era for In-Plan Solutions
By: Randy Myers Since the debut of the 401(k) plan four decades ago, retirees and near-retirees have fretted overhow to convert their savings into a reliable stream of retirement income. Recently, their optionshave begun to broaden, thanks in part to passage of the SECURE Act in late 2019. The newlaw includes several provisions that make […]
