Advisor Sales Strategies

Lincoln Trust Co. last week released a report on six megatrends that would affect the retirement plan industry in 2012, including the new fee disclosure legislation and changing fiduciary standards.

The Employee Benefits Security Administration wrote a letter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission commending the organization for the care it took in coordinating its external business conduct standards for swap dealers and major swap participants with the U.S. Department of Labor.

Vanguard has launched a new target date fund with young investors in mind.

Global investors are more optimistic about the economy during the next year. The Bank of America Merrill Lynch Survey of Fund Managers reports that only 3 percent of fund managers surveyed in January believe the global economy will experience a slowdown in 2012, compared to 27 percent in December.

Looking ahead to a post-retirement future and the safest withdrawal amount to maintain their savings, still-working employees have a better sense of how to pre-load to get to a financially safter spot.

Denver-based 361 Capital has launched a new managed futures index that offers a counter-trend equity strategy.