sharon sanders
Editor-in-Chief & President
Perfect example of why NO companies should be nationalized.
Pension insurer shifted to stocks
Concern increases as losses mount; Failing plans could overwhelm agency
By Michael Kranish, Globe Staff | March 30, 2009
WASHINGTON - Just months before the start of last year's stock market collapse, the federal agency that insures the retirement funds of 44 million Americans departed from its conservative investment strategy and decided to put much of its $64 billion insurance fund into stocks.
Switching from a heavy reliance on bonds, the Pension Benefit <org idsrc="other-OTC" value="GRTYA">Guaranty Corporation</org> decided to pour billions of dollars into speculative investments such as stocks in emerging foreign markets, real estate, and private equity funds.
The agency refused to say how much of the new investment strategy has been implemented or how the fund has fared during the downturn. The agency would only say that its fund was down 6.5 percent - and all of its stock-related investments were down 23 percent - as of last Sept. 30, the end of its fiscal year. But that was before most of the recent stock market decline and just before the investment switch was scheduled to begin in earnest.
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more.....
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2009/03/30/pension_insurer_shifted_to_stocks/
Pension insurer shifted to stocks
Concern increases as losses mount; Failing plans could overwhelm agency
By Michael Kranish, Globe Staff | March 30, 2009
WASHINGTON - Just months before the start of last year's stock market collapse, the federal agency that insures the retirement funds of 44 million Americans departed from its conservative investment strategy and decided to put much of its $64 billion insurance fund into stocks.
Switching from a heavy reliance on bonds, the Pension Benefit <org idsrc="other-OTC" value="GRTYA">Guaranty Corporation</org> decided to pour billions of dollars into speculative investments such as stocks in emerging foreign markets, real estate, and private equity funds.
The agency refused to say how much of the new investment strategy has been implemented or how the fund has fared during the downturn. The agency would only say that its fund was down 6.5 percent - and all of its stock-related investments were down 23 percent - as of last Sept. 30, the end of its fiscal year. But that was before most of the recent stock market decline and just before the investment switch was scheduled to begin in earnest.
snip
more.....
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2009/03/30/pension_insurer_shifted_to_stocks/
