Smart401k Blog

In the headlines

A look at some of the market movers over the past week:

• The US Treasury announced its public-private investment partnership
• Daimler scored a $2.7 billion investment from the UAE’s Aabar Investments
• New home sales unexpectedly rose in February as prices continued to fall
• A Bank of America shareholder launched a campaign to oust CEO Ken Lewis from his chairman post

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The recent economic downturn has forced many companies to consider making spending cuts and as a result a growing number of firms have decided to suspend their retirement plan matching contributions. Since this is a growing trend, I thought I would take the time to go over what you can do if your company has or is in the process of suspending their matching contribution.

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In the headlines

A look at some of the market movers over the past week:

• Much of the week was spent dealing with a furor over bonuses paid to AIG employees
• Cisco announced it will take on a broader part of the tech market by building servers
• Alcoa announced measures to weather the downturn, including cutting its dividend
• The Seattle Post-Intelligencer issued its final print edition

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There has been a lot of confusion concerning the recent rule changes for Minimum Required Distributions (MRD’s) so I thought it would be good to provide you with more on information on MRDs, the recent rule changes and who it affects. 

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In the headlines

A look at some of the market movers over the past week:

• Drug-maker Merck announced the acquisition of competitor Schering-Plough
• BNP Paribas reached a deal to buy a majority stake in Fortis Bank from the Belgian government
• Oil prices saw renewed life as traders eyed a potential OPEC production cut
• The World Bank expects that the global economy will shrink for the first time since World War II (more…)

Everyone is aware that the government has taken steps they believe will fuel the economy.  But you might be wondering how these steps directly impact you?   Below you will find a summary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and how individuals, like us, will be directly affected. 

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In the headlines

A look at some of the market movers over the past week:

• The US government pledged another $30 billion to troubled insurer AIG
• Two major banks opted to pay back TARP money
• Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway reported plunging profits
• Personal income, spending, and savings all rose in January

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Planning for retirement is a long process.  Ideally, from the time you start your first job to your last day of employment, your goal is to build the biggest nest egg possible.  Once you decide to hang it up though, life may suddenly transition from the daily grind to days of golf, traveling and anything else you dream of (we are still talking about the ideal situation here).  (more…)