State of Florida pension fund loses 1/4th of value

B

bond tr4der

Big Loss For Florida Pensions

State funds down 25 percent
By The Associated Press
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - The state pension plan has lost more than a quarter of its value.

A State Board of Administration spokesman said Monday that the pension fund was worth $100.5 billion on Oct. 31 after peaking $37.9 billion higher 13 months earlier.

The State Board of Administration manages 34 public funds. The largest is the state's pension plan for almost 1 million public employees, retirees and their family members.

Overall, SBA's assets have dropped by $62 billion in the last 13 months.

Board spokesman Dennis MacKee says SBA funds are invested for the long term to survive market losses. An annual assessment showed the pension fund with a 7% surplus in June, 1 of just a few public retirement systems on the positive side.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
 
not sure beyond the obvious why the post, however 'pensions' are a significant financial
group imo within the economy
in the link's Canadian story there's some explanation of the pension types -
Defined Benefit which i think is a universal classification, exists in the UK:
http://finance.sympatico.msn.ca/investing/deirdremcmurdy/article.aspx?cp-documentid=13523936
the reference to BCE is interesting because Citi is one of the lead financiers of the deal
and as in other such deals, if Citi goes down so do of course loads of other deals where
Citi is supposedly providing loans
boomers beginning in 1946 are now 62 years old, pensioned or pensionable, Canada's
aging baby boomers account for close 10M of the country's 32M people
US: 78.2 million estimated number of baby boomers, July 1/05
interesting: " In contemporary economics, Harry Dent, a Harvard graduate and Fortune
100 consultant has popularized the baby-boomer age-wave theory. According to Dent
as a result of baby boomers retiring, the US stock-market will peak between 2007 and
2009. This prediction is based on the observation that consumer spending peaks near
age 50. Some experts expect the worst consumer recession since 1980 to occur when
ageing boomers start retiring, adding to rising unemployment, decline in house values
and declining stock prices." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_wave
there's also a more modern class of pensions where '30 years and out/age 55' have both
increased the number of pensions and lowered the pensionable age, plus there's confirmed
stats that people are living much longer requiring even more capital in pension funds for
longer periods of pension funding
for the past several months 'many' people have revised out their retirement age and no
doubt during the next couple of years many others will also have to do the same, as well
there are those who retired now back at work or looking in a worsening employment situ
as well the cutbacks retirees are making in their budgets and spending which contributes
to the overall decline in the economy
how guaranteed pensions are i don't know but 'shortfalls' as well as company bankruptcies
add to the pension malaise while States, municipalities and etc are also going i think to be
looking to the governments for funding, adding to the deflation spiral, economic woes

the thread may not appear 'news worthy' - possibly because of the youthful age of members
but it's certainly relevant and important to the current economics and declining markets
 
The viability of pensions are based on the theory of moderate, consistent, long-term Market gains.

It took the Market 25 years to re-test its 1929 highs.

It took another 15 years for the Market to break its 1968 highs.

Punctuated between those recesses were aggressive bull markets.

The theory that consistent returns can be achieved outside T-Bills or savings accounts is false.

Pension returns will get re-priced in a big way.

The Boomers will have to adjust to a lower standard of living and save more. The Horror.
 
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