Grant Thornton has published Retirement Plan Survey 2011, and it holds a number of intriguing factoids. Here’s one:
How often is fiduciary training provided to the administrative/investment committee for your plan (other than by your record keeper)?
Never… 23%
Very infrequently and with no set pattern… 41%
Annually… 24%
When new members are added… 12%
In turn, the study advises: “In light of the many new developments annually impacting internal plan fiduciaries, we recommend more frequent (and regular) fiduciary training. The best practice is to provide fiduciary training every year, as well as legal updates as new developments occur.”

Last week’s Federal Reserve update on loans at commercial banks in the U.S. reports the fourth straight monthly rise in C&I loans in February. The relative size of the increases continues to slip, however, increasing by $2.3 billion, well down from January’s $5.3 billion advance. Meantime, real estate loans continue to retreat in absolute terms. Last month’s decline accelerated, posting the biggest monthly drop in a year in seasonally adjusted dollar terms.

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Japan Nuclear Crisis Deepens
Voice of America | Mar 15
The crisis at Japan’s damaged nuclear power complex in the northeastern part of the country is worsening. Top government officials acknowledge further, significantly higher radiation leaks and explosions at a total of three reactors. Tuesday morning, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan delivered a nationally broadcast message to citizens, after a third reactor building explosion was confirmed in Fukushima. Urging the public to heed his words calmly, Kan acknowledged one of the damaged reactors is facing a much higher risk of releasing radiation into the atmosphere. The prime minister asked those living between 20 and 30 kilometers from the plant to stay indoors. Those living closer, about 200,000 people in all, had previously evacuated.

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