Data & Research July 1, 2007

Financial Services Benefits Offered By Less than Half of Employers in 2007

Although benefits offered by employers remained mostly the same in 2007 as in 2006, there was a slight decrease in the number of organizations that offered financial services benefits to employees.
Reported by
According to the Society for Human Resources Management’s (SHRM) 2007 Benefits Survey, there was a decrease in individual investment advice and retirement planning services offered by employers in 2007. Other benefits that decreased in 2007 included automobile allowances/expenses, traditional defined benefit pension plans, full flexible benefits plans, employee discounts on company services, and commissions and loans to employees for emergency/disaster assistance.
The number of organizations offering traditional pension plans decreased from 48% to 40%, according to a press release.
SHRM found the most commonly offered benefits were direct deposit of paychecks, paid holidays, professional development opportunities, payroll deductions, prescription drug program coverage and dental insurance. In addition, almost all survey participants offered some type of health insurance plan.
HR respondents indicated they planned within the next year to add wellness programs in coming benefit packages including weight loss programs (5%), smoking cessation programs (6%), health screening programs (5%), and health care premium discounts for getting an annual health risk assessment (6%).
A full copy of survey results can be obtained by SHRM members at www.shrm.org/surveys.
The Markets June 27, 2007

ETF Assets Top $485 Billion in May

Assets of all exchange-traded funds (ETFs) rose in May by $18.97 billion, or 4.1%, to $485.51 billion, according to data from the Investment Company Institute (ICI).
Reported by
Over the past 12 months, ETF assets increased $150.27 billion, or 44.8%.
By ETF type, total Domestic Equity ETF assets were $323.6 billion for the month, compared to $311.9 billion in April. Broad-based domestic equity holdings made up $254.8 billion of the May total, while Sector/Industry domestic equity holdings accounted for $68.8 billion.
Global International Equity Index ETFs held $137.4 billion in assets in May, compared to $131.1 billion in April. Bond Index ETF assets were $24.3 billion for the month, up from $23.4 billion.
The value of ETF shares issued in May was $58.8 billion, while shares redeemed were valued at $53.4 billion, according to ICI data. For 2007 ETFs have experienced a net issuance of $26.44 billion.
A detailed breakdown of the monthly ETF data is available at http://members.ici.org/stats/etfdata.xls.

«