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Commentary: Inflation to rear up next year

Inflation will likely emerge as a major investor issue in 2016, especially if energy prices perk up, writes Stewart Taylor of Eaton Vance Management. He says many investors are not adequately protected. WealthManagement.com (U.S.) (12/1)

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Commentary: Advisers need to learn about swap powers for trusts

Financial advisers monitoring assets in trusts must be familiar with swap powers, writes estate planner Martin Shenkman. Advisers should identify trusts that have swap powers, discuss the swap powers with the trustee and arrange a source of cash for the swap, Shenkman writes. Financial-Planning.com (12/1)

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Survey shows disconnect between advice and clients’ longevity fears

About 60% of financial professionals in a Saybrus Partners survey said outliving savings is their clients’ biggest concern. But only 35% said they frequently recommend variable annuities, and 27% said the same of fixed or indexed annuities. Advisers’ recommendations may be focused on accumulation instead of retirement needs in many…

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Index: Advisers more optimistic as clients warm to risk

Financial advisers are becoming more upbeat about business conditions for wealth managers, in response to sharply rising risk tolerance among clients. An index from Financial Planning that tracks confidence among retirement advisers increased 5.3, to 54.5, for November, rebounding from two months at record lows. Financial-Planning.com (12/1)

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Study: Cognitive impairments may hinder demand for some products

Research shows that people in cognitive decline might be resistant to products such as annuities that have large upfront costs. University of Missouri researcher Michael Guillemette said providers could boost demand by breaking the upfront costs into smaller charges to be paid over time. PlanAdviser.com (12/1)

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Americans fall short in financial literacy

New research by Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services finds that the US ranks 14th out of 148 countries in financial literacy, trailing such countries as Germany, Israel, Canada, the United Kingdom and Norway. ThinkAdvisor (12/1)

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Research: Investors prefer guaranteed returns

More than 80% of investors prefer investments that guarantee a 4% return over products with higher returns but also more vulnerability, according to updated research from Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America. That finding reflects in part the recent market volatility. PlanAdviser.com (12/1)

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Commentary: Advisers should focus on wealth generators to win assets

Studies show that financial advisers often lose assets when a client dies and passes on an inheritance. To try to retain more of those assets, advisers should focus on fostering relationships with current clients rather than trying directly to start new relationships with the inheritors, write Russ Alan Prince and…

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What’s The Prospesct Really Saying?

By: Danny Wood Maria was quite certain she’d laid the groundwork for a really big order. Her prospect, Bert, was asking lots of questions during her presentation. He was smiling a lot. He was nodding his head. He was sending all kinds of classic “buy signals.” Near the end of…

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Robo-advisers present regulatory conundrum

Securities and Exchange Commission member Kara Stein says rules may need “tweaks and revisions” to adequately cover robo-advisers, especially when it comes to fiduciary duty. David Lyon, CEO of Oranj, says robo-advisers act more like brokers and should be regulated as such. ThinkAdvisor (11/30

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