October 21, 2012 Tags: INTERNATIONAL business enterprises, INVESTMENTS, JOINT ventures, MEDICAL policy, MULTIHOSPITAL systems
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The article discusses dividend stocks as an option for retirement investments. Topics include the percent of return on U.S. dividend stocks in 2011 compared to the performance of the Standard & Poor 500 stock index, the benefits of dividend stocks for retirement portfolios, and investment suggestions for dividend-paying stocks such as the fast food restaurant chain McDonald’s Corp., the technology company International Business Machines Corp. (IBM), and the telecommunications company At&T.
Read MoreAugust 19, 2012 Tags: DIVIDEND yield, DIVIDENDS, EARNINGS per share, INVESTMENTS, RETIREMENT -- Planning, STOCKS (Finance) -- Rate of return
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The article looks at real estate investment trusts (REIT) as a retirement investment for Canadian retirees. Topics include the return on investment for real estate, high yields, predicted appreciation of REIT prices as of June 2012 as the economy recovers, and the relationship between the U.S. and Canadian real estate markets.
Read MoreAugust 17, 2012 Tags: INVESTMENTS, REAL estate investment, REAL estate investment trusts, REAL property, RETIREMENT -- Planning
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IF recent stock market gyrations have taken a bite out of your 401(k), get ready for more discomfort. You’re about to learn how much you’re paying just to maintain that account. New Labor Department rules will require fuller disclosure about the fees charged on 401(k)’s. Fees, of course, can be an enormous drain on retirement savings — but they are often obscured, giving many Americans the impression that the accounts are somehow cost-free.
Read MoreJune 13, 2012 Tags: DISCLOSURE, INVESTMENTS, RETIREMENT income, STOCK exchanges, TRUSTS & trustees
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The article offers information on Iraqi Kurdistan, with particular focus on its differences from Iraq. It states that the region has a large sense of peace and serenity, which was the primary reason for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) use of the name “the other Iraq” to attract investment and tourism. It mentions that division between ethnic or subethnic and tribal groups remain within Iraqi Kurdistan, despite proliferation of the cultural products of nationalism.
Read MoreJune 1, 2012 Tags: ETHNIC groups, GOVERNMENT policy, INVESTMENTS, NATIONALISM, PEACE, TOURISM -- Government policy, TRIBES
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We consider an optimal investment strategy for a defined contributory pension plan in Nigeria using dynamic optimization technique. The Pension Plan Members (PPMs) make contributions continuously into the pension funds. The Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) propose to invest the contributions made by the PPMs into Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) bond such as construction of roads in Nigeria. They propose that every road constructed must has a tollgate in order to collect toll and make more wealth for the PPMs at time t ≤ T. We assume that there are Alternative Roads (AR) the drivers may take to their destination without paying toll. The AR may not be good enough for the vehicles to pass smoothly. We assume that Pension Plan Company (PPC) will make more wealth for the PPMs if the Company Roads (CR) are highly motorable. The PPC estimates some percentage of the Gross Returns (GR) at time t to be set aside as the Costs of Roads Construction (CRC). They also estimates some percentage of the Gross-Net Returns (GNR) (i.e. the returns after CRC has been deducted) as Maintenance Costs (MC). They further estimates some percentage of the Gross-Net-Net Returns (GNNR) (i.e. the returns after CRC and MC have been deducted) as Administrative Costs (AC) at time t . Our aim is to find the optimal value of wealth that will accrue to the PPMs over a period of time. We found that the optimal Net Returns (NR) accrued to the PPMs is N6.6434×1014( N denotes Naira). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Read MoreMay 31, 2012 Tags: DEFINED contribution pension plans, INVESTMENTS, MATHEMATICAL optimization, PENSIONS
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We study the optimal investment and optimal portfolio strategies with minimum guarantee and inflation protection in a defined contribution (DC) pension scheme. We assume a market structure that is characterized by a cash account, an indexed bond (i.e., inflation-linked bond) and stock. We obtain optimal share of portfolio values (that depend on the minimum guarantee) in the indexed bond and stock for the pension plan member (PPM) at time t. We find that in the presence of indexed bond in the investment strategy, the inflation risk that is associated with the PPM’s contributions and minimum guarantee is hedged. Hence, indexed bond can be used to hedge inflation risk that is associated with a contributory pension funds scheme. We also find in our numerical result that, with effective management of the pension funds by pension fund administrators (PFAs), PPMs will have high returns from their investment. From our results, we find that the optimal terminal wealth that will accrue to the PPM and PFA to be N1.97×1022 . We also find that the minimum guarantee that will accrue to the PPM at retirement to be N3.05×108. The portfolio values in stock, indexed bond and cash account are 0.5, 3.1, and -2.6, respectively. Therefore, more investment should go to indexed bond and stock since they yield positive portfolio value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Read MoreMay 31, 2012 Tags: DEFINED benefit pension plans, DEFINED contribution pension plans, INFLATION (Finance), INVESTMENTS, PENSION trusts, PENSIONS, PORTFOLIO management (Investments)
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The article discusses the steel industry. According to the author, the industry is one of the stock markets’ most cyclical sectors as demand for steel increases during times of economic growth and decreases when the global economy falters. It is suggested that as the economy recovers the steel industry will also bounce back. The author provides information and advice on how to choose investments in the steel industry. INSET: THE CB HOTLIST.
Read MoreMay 14, 2012 Tags: BUSINESS cycles, ECONOMIC recovery, INVESTMENTS, STEEL industry, STEEL supply & demand, STOCKS (Finance) -- Prices
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This paper examines the recent upsurge in foreign direct investment by emerging market firms into the United States. Traditionally, direct investment flowed from developed to developing countries, bringing with it superior technology, organizational capital, and access to international capital markets, yet increasingly there is a trend toward ‘capital flowing uphill’ with emerging market investors acquiring a broad range of assets in developed countries. Using transaction-specific information and firm-level accounting data, the paper evaluates the operating performance of publicly traded U.S. firms that have been acquired by firms from emerging markets over the period 1980-2006. The empirical methodology uses a difference-in-differences approach combined with propensity score matching to create an appropriate control group of nonacquired firms. The results suggest that emerging country acquirers tend to choose U.S. targets that are larger in size (measured as sales, total assets, and employment) relative to matched nonacquired firms. In the years following the acquisition target firm sales and employment decline while profitability rises compared with matched nonacquired firms, suggesting significant restructuring of the target firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Read MoreMarch 23, 2012 Tags: ASSETS (Accounting), BUSINESS enterprises, CAPITAL market, CAPITALISTS & financiers, DEVELOPING countries, EMERGING markets, FOREIGN ownership of real property, INVESTMENTS
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The author offers investment advice based on an analysis of a market’s financial performance. Topics include why investing in North American and European markets is prudent in 2012, the gross domestic product (GDP) growth of emerging markets in China and India, and how poor corporate governance can limit shareholder profits.
Read MoreMarch 19, 2012 Tags: ECONOMIC indicators, EMERGING markets, FINANCIAL performance, GROSS domestic product, INVESTMENTS, STOCKHOLDERS
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