Industry News

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NEWS INDUSTRY NEWS SEP 06, 2009
Military spouses receive financial training

Finra is continuing to reach out to the spouses of military personnel to give them the training to help others deal with financial difficulties.

NEWS RETIREMENT PLANNING SEP 06, 2009
Advice for cancer patients

The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute of Boston and the Massachusetts chapter of the Financial Planning Association are set to ramp up their groundbreaking free financial-planning coaching service for cancer patients this fall.

NEWS RIAS SEP 06, 2009
Bernanke reappointment makes perfect sense

Most financial commentators approved when President Obama two weeks ago reappointed Ben Bernanke as Federal Reserve Board chairman. However, in most of the commentaries, the approval was based on the belief that it would be unwise for the president to introduce more uncertainty into the financial markets at this critical period in the recovery.

NEWS INDUSTRY NEWS SEP 06, 2009
College savings legislation likely to be sidelined by health care push

A bill that would continue to allow investors in Section 529 college savings plans to make two changes each year to their investment allocations appears unlikely to be passed by the House anytime soon, according to industry and Washington insiders.

NEWS INDUSTRY NEWS SEP 06, 2009
Marketing efforts from 529 plans accentuate the positive

As the Section 529 college savings plan industry this month enters its most important marketing period, it has turned a blind eye to the unsettling events of the past 12 months.

NEWS LIFE INSURANCE AND ANNUITIES SEP 06, 2009
Advisers reach out to clients amid wildfires

As wildfires blazed through Angeles National Forest last week, advisers who had weathered other such natural disasters kept their data safe and found ways to connect with their clients.

NEWS LIFE INSURANCE AND ANNUITIES SEP 04, 2009
Central United Life Insurance fights back against accusations it shortchanged cancer clients

Central United Life Insurance Co. has come out swinging against a lawsuit filed by the Missouri Department of Insurance, which accused the carrier of improperly paying claims to cancer patients.

NEWS TAX SEP 04, 2009
H&R Block reports loss for 1Q due to costs

H&R Block Inc. said today it lost a larger-than-expected $133.6 million in the first quarter, about the same as a year ago, as acquisition expenses and other costs offset slightly higher revenues.

NEWS INDUSTRY NEWS SEP 04, 2009
Jobless rate at 9.7%; 216K jobs lost in August

The unemployment rate rose to 9.7 percent in August, the highest since June 1983, as employers eliminated a net total of 216,000 jobs.

NEWS LIFE INSURANCE AND ANNUITIES SEP 04, 2009
Insurance agent gets up to five years for running a Ponzi scheme

A South Shore, Ky.-based insurance agent this week was sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to pay almost $400,000 in fines for swindling clients in a Ponzi scheme that involved annuities.

NEWS INDUSTRY NEWS SEP 03, 2009
New jobless claims dip less than expected to 570K

New jobless claims fell slightly last week while the number of people receiving unemployment benefits rose, a sign the job market's recovery will be long and bumpy.

NEWS INDUSTRY NEWS SEP 03, 2009
Retailers report sales declines for August

Retailers on today posted sales declines for August as shoppers held back on back-to-school purchases and continued to focus on necessities, raising further concern about the upcoming holiday season.

NEWS INDUSTRY NEWS SEP 03, 2009
Spike in student loans could be boon to 529s

The amount of money students borrowed for college has risen dramatically in the last year, a development that could be beneficial to Section 529 college savings plans — if the 529 industry can effectively communicate its message, observers noted.

NEWS INDUSTRY NEWS SEP 03, 2009
Former AllianceBernstein CEO to open new firm

Former AllianceBernstein CEO Lewis A. Sanders will launch a new firm as early as January, according to sources who declined to be identified.

NEWS LIFE INSURANCE AND ANNUITIES SEP 02, 2009
Insurers Argus and Tremont settle Madoff suit

Insurers Argus Group Holdings Ltd. and Tremont International Insurance Ltd. have reached a partial settlement in a lawsuit filed by variable-annuity and variable-universal-life customers who lost money in Bernard Madoff's $65 billion Ponzi scheme, according to court documents.

NEWS INDUSTRY NEWS SEP 02, 2009
Finra settles with Northwestern, two others, on auction-rate securities

The latest settlements are with Northwestern Mutual Investment Services LLC of Milwaukee, which was fined $200,000; City Securities Corp. of Indianapolis, which was fined $250,000; and Fifth Third Securities Inc. of Cincinnati, which was fined $150,000.

NEWS REGULATION AND LEGISLATION SEP 02, 2009
College savings plan legislation likely to be sidelined by health care push

A bill that would continue to allow investors in Section 529 college savings plans to make two changes each year to their investment allocations appears unlikely to pass the House anytime soon, industry and Washington insiders say.

NEWS INDUSTRY NEWS SEP 02, 2009
Energy and grain futures traders look to the skies — and the Farmers Almanac — for market clues

Advisers and investors may snap up <a href=http://www.almanac.com>The Old Farmers Almanac</a>, which hit the newsstands yesterday, not only for the weather forecasts but to see which way the wind is blowing when it comes to futures.

NEWS INDUSTRY NEWS SEP 02, 2009
Productivity up 6.6% in 2Q, most in six years

Worker productivity grew at the fastest pace in nearly six years in the spring while labor costs fell by the most in nine years, as companies slashed costs to survive the recession.

NEWS LIFE INSURANCE AND ANNUITIES SEP 01, 2009
John Hancock Life Insurance, John Hancock Variable Life Insurance receive approval to merge with John Hancock Life Insurance (USA)

Two John Hancock Life Insurance affiliates have received regulatory approval in Massachusetts to merge into another company entity.