Latest news with #retirement
CBS News
2 hours ago
- Business
- CBS News
Teachers' World in Stockton to close doors after 39 years
STOCKTON – Wendy Lum has stood behind the counter at Teachers' World in Stockton for the past 39 years. After decades of hard work and dedication to the youth of San Joaquin County, she's finally dedicating some well-deserved time to herself. "It's been hard, you know, but I'm really looking forward to retirement," Wendy Lum said. "I have been here for 39 years, so I'm ready." While she may be ready and know it's time to hang her hat, Lum can't help but look back at the memories that built her career and the community that has supported her all this time. "It was just neat to get to know them and see their love for kids. A teacher would come in, using their own money just to buy a book to help a child in their classroom," she continued. "I watched one person in particular kind of grew up. He was a student and a teacher. He got a job, he got married, he has kids. That kind of stuff was really neat. If I wrote down these stories, it probably would be a best-selling book." While the shelves are slowly clearing, Lum still gets a pep in her step, showing off her store decades later. It's one of the reasons why loyal customers keep coming back year after year. "We've been coming here like once a year for 10 years," Loyal Customer and Teacher Vanessa Piombo said. "When school ends at the end of school, they come. We bring the kids and they get their things that they need to stay enriched during the summer. So we're really sad to see the store close." Being one of the only school supply stores in the county, Lum and Teachers' World will be missed by many. "We're gonna miss you," Piombo shared. "Stockton's gonna miss you, like the whole San Joaquin County is gonna miss you because it's the only store really in the area." But, not as much as Lum will miss her community. "I just want to thank each customer for their support and for being so kind, for being so good in teaching, you know, and really educating the children. I love that part. I am going to miss my customers," Lum said. Lum already has plans to visit her family when she retires, but it may not be the permanent end of Teachers' World when she's gone. She is in the process of finding someone to take over ownership of the store, but if not, she'll pack up the rest of her supplies and donate them to local shelters and other organizations. Teachers' World is set to close on Friday.
Entrepreneur
6 hours ago
- Business
- Entrepreneur
Best and Worst States for Retirement? Here's the Ranking
One in five Americans aged 50 and over have no retirement savings. One in five Americans aged 50 and over has no retirement savings, and more than half worry that they won't have enough money to last once they leave the workforce, according to an AARP survey. However, where U.S. workers live can have a significant impact on their retirement readiness. Getting familiar with some of the key averages in your state, from 401(k) balances to median incomes, life expectancies, cost of living and more, can help you understand just how prepared you are — or aren't — for your golden years. Related: How Much Money Do You Need to Retire Comfortably in Your State? Here's the Breakdown. Western & Southern Financial Group examined those metrics and others to rank all 50 states based on where retirees have the best and worst readiness for retirement. New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland, Virginia and Vermont came out on top for states where people are most prepared for retirement, per the study. What's more, residents in Connecticut and New Jersey reported the highest average 401(k) balances: $546,000 and $514,000, respectively. Residents over the age of 65 in those states also have high median incomes — over $96,000. Related: Here Are the Best and Worst States for Retirement in 2025, According to a New Report Americans living in West Virginia, Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee and Arizona may fare the worst in retirement, according to the research. Mississippi and Arkansas residents reported some of the lowest average 401(k) balances, at $348,000 and $364,000, respectively. In West Virginia and Arkansas, residents over the age of 65 have median incomes under $58,000. Related: These Are the States Where $1 Million in Retirement Savings Lasts the Longest (and Where You'll Be Broke in No Time) Check out Western & Southern Financial Group's full ranking of Americans' retirement readiness by state below: Image Credit: Courtesy of Western & Southern Financial Group
Wall Street Journal
7 hours ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Why Doesn't the U.S. Retirement Age Budge?
When reading your editorial 'The New Retirement Age in Denmark Is 70' (May 27), I couldn't help but think of the myriad pharmaceutical commercials showing senior citizens engaged in vigorous, youthful physical activities as a result of their effective medications. That the elderly can and should remain vibrant and engaged well into their golden years is inarguable. Yet the prospect of raising the retirement age in the U.S. in light of medical advances is a nonstarter, Social Security's imminent insolvency be damned. How ironic that while countless seniors are now able to remain mentally and physically capable for far longer than ever before, when it comes to their concomitant ability to be gainfully employed for longer as well, fiscally irresponsible politicians want to continue treating them as enfeebled and worthy of a nursing home.
News.com.au
7 hours ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Precision Points: Stockpicking and fundamental value still keys for the patient investor
In Precision Points, Precision Funds Management executive directors Dermot Woods and Andy Clayton draw on insights from two decades on the front lines of equity markets to share their expertise with Stockhead readers. The world is heading increasingly in the direction of passive investing, ETFs and index tracking portfolio management. That lines up the capital held in major institutions, especially the super giants responsible for managing the retirement savings of millions of Australians, more closely to the momentum of the market. But fundies say there is still a role for stockpicking. Precision Funds Management's performance over the past month is a case in point, with portfolio managers Dermot Woods and Andy Clayton pointing to double digit gains, beating the performance post-Liberation Day of the broader market. They say the worm has turned outside the gold space, with a number of long-held conviction bets paying off. "The market's broadening out all of a sudden. There's a little bit of breadth to the rally which is interesting because any time we've had an indicator of that really in the last year or so, that's immediately been murdered," Woods said. "You can sort of smell the animal spirits returning to the smaller cap space and (investors) being a bit more open minded." One of the key triggers has been declining interest rates, with cuts in February and May taking the RBA cash rate to 3.85%, the lowest level since May 2023. "What benefits most from declining rates? All the gold guys will tell you it's gold because everything's good for gold for gold bulls," Woods said. " But what it's really good for is base metals and property and old fashioned cyclicals – contractors and things like that." Success stories Among the key contributors to Precision's performance in May were property sector stocks Cedar Woods Properties and Australian Finance Group (ASX:AFG). They've lifted a respective ~25% and ~22% over the past month. Cedar Woods is a small cap developer with around 9700 lots planned across 37 residential developments in WA, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia. AFG, meanwhile, is a mortgage aggregator, which recorded an 18.5% lift in mortgage lodgments for the third quarter of FY2025, its highest on record at $24bn. Woods said Precision had held the trade for a couple of years. "It's a patient trade really," he said. "Part of the reason we were happy to sit with a patient trade in property rather than say lithium is we're getting paid a dividend. "That's 2 or 3 times cash rate sitting there. And there's proper fundamental asset value that we look at, certainly in the case of Cedar Woods. "We bought it for the two things that are happening now, which is lower rates and stupid government kneejerk policy to bribe the electorate." The other, more recent trade, that has worked out has come in the base metals space, where copper miner Sandfire Resources (ASX:SFR) has quickly returned to all time highs within five weeks of being sold off to 12 month lows in the week of market mayhem following Donald Trump's tariff policy reveal. LME three month copper prices fell to US$8590/t on April 9, when SFR shares hit $8.15, but they've sharply rebounded to US$9635/t by May 8. There's been genuine market tightness behind that run. Copper smelters have spent most of the year paying miners to treat their concentrate because supplies are short compared to refining capacity in China, while at just 83,000t copper metal stockpiles in LME warehouses are their barest in two years. "There's always pockets of overvaluation. There's always pockets of undervaluation. And the one that we spotted two years ago was definitely property. It has taken two years to work to work out," Woods said. "The one we spotted two months ago was copper. We didn't think that would happen (in only) a month and a half." Fundamental value While sectors with strong momentum can make money at the right time of the cycle – gold miners and developers are a case in point right now – Woods and Clayton said they liked to look for stocks that offered fundamental value, which protected downside risk if the market turned. They're wary on gold and view a number of companies in the space as overvalued right now. But those which have long term cashflow generation and production growth in full view, like West African producer Perseus Mining (ASX:PRU), still ring true. "A lot of (gold stocks' prices) is influenced by what happens on the (passive ETFs) GDX or GDXJ overnight," Clayton said. "Which is why Perseus is one of our key holdings. We think ... fundamentally they're cheap." Precision thinks Perseus is unique, given it has two-three growth assets all of which can be funded through internal cashflows. "They're generating US$150 million a quarter in free cash, plus they've got growth," Clayton said. "They bought the Nyanzaga asset (in Tanzania) off OreCorp. They've just done FID on that. And they'll be arguably ... plus 600,000oz by FY28. "They have good, long life reserves at all their key projects. " Compared to the Aussie guys that's, I would say, probably trading 50% less than a comparable 500,000oz producer."
The Independent
10 hours ago
- Business
- The Independent
Workers could see £6,000 boost to pension pots under Government plans
Millions of workers could see a £6,000 boost to their retirement pots as part of Government plans to double the number of UK pension megafunds by 2030. Reforms in the Pension Schemes Bill propose that multi-employer defined contribution pension schemes and local government pension scheme pools operate at megafund level, managing at least £25 billion in assets within the next five years. This could result in an investment of £50 billion in infrastructure projects, which the Treasury hopes will boost the economy and drive up higher returns for savers. Chancellor Rachel Reeves said: 'We're making pensions work for Britain. These reforms mean better returns for workers and billions more invested in clean energy and high-growth businesses – the plan for change in action.' The schemes are expected to save £1 billion a year through economies of scale and improved investment strategies, the Treasury said. Under the reforms, the local government pension scheme will be consolidated, reducing the current 86 administering authorities into six pools. Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said: 'The untapped potential of the £392 billion local government pension scheme is enormous. 'Through these reforms we will make sure it drives growth and opportunities in communities across the country for years to come – delivering on our plan for change.' Sir Steve Webb, a former Liberal Democrat pensions minister who is now a partner at consultants LCP (Lane Clark & Peacock), described it as a 'truly a red letter day for pension schemes, their members and the companies who stand behind them'. He said: 'The Government has clearly been bold in this area and this opens up the potential for this surplus money to be used more productively to benefit scheme members, firms and the wider economy.'
