Products February 14, 2006

Hueler Adds Inflation Adjusted Option to Annuity Lineup

February 14, 2006 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Hueler Companies has announced the addition of an inflation adjusted income annuity option to its Income Solutions annuity platform.
Reported by

According to the announcement, the adjusted option will include versions from insurance companies AIG, MetLife, and the Principal Financial Group.   The option is based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) and allows individuals to receive automatic increases to their fixed income annuities based on the changes in the cost of living index.

The inflation protection annuity option will also be added to the platforms that Hewitt Associates, a global human resources services firm; Citistreet,a global benefits delivery firm; and Wealth Management Systems Inc., a provider of technology-based rollover products and services, make available to their clients.   Additionally, IBM, a Hewitt client, will be among the first plan sponsors to make competitively bid inflation protected annuities available to its 401(k) participants (See  (k)Plans: After Math ).

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“Our Income Solutions immediate annuity platform offers individuals the opportunity to purchase institutionally-priced annuities which, due to the reduced cost and competitive quote process, generally results in higher monthly income payments than those purchased in the retail market.   We are very pleased to be the first platform to offer competitively-quoted, CPI-linked annuity offerings, which complement the platform’s other income annuities,” said Kelli Hueler, president of Hueler Companies.

The Income Solutions program is available only to individuals whose recordkeepers, service providers, benefit consultants, corporate plan sponsors and advisors have partnered with Hueler to make these solutions available.

Hueler Companies is a technology and research firm offering resources for the analysis, research and implementation of stable value and annuity products.   More information can be found at  www.hueler.com .

Benefits February 13, 2006

Japan's Welfare Ministry Rejects Pension Cut Request

February 13, 2006 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare has rejected Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation's (NTT) request to cut the defined benefit pension plan payments of retirees.
Reported by

The Jiji Press reports that the Ministry turned down the request on the grounds that NTT’s business has not deteriorated remarkably. NTT has reported profits each year since fiscal year 2002 ended in March of 2003.

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In April 2004, NTT reduced accrued pension payments for around 110,000 current employees by linking the assumed yield for pension asset investment to 10-year Japanese government bond yields. The company’s proposal for cutting the assumed investment yield for around 140,000 retirees from the present 4.5 – 7% to the levels for current employees gained agreement in December 2004 from about 90% of those already receiving payments, according to the Jiji Press.

Japanese companies must receive approval from the Ministry to change the design of their pension plans since the plans are eligible for tax breaks. This is the first time the Ministry has denied a company’s request to reduce benefits.

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