Here in the states, every retiree has a significant portion of their retirement "nest egg" tied up in the stock market. Every worker that has a decent company job has their 401k exclusively in the stock market. If the stock market was allowed to ebb and flow as it's supposed to, Americans would pull their money out in droves!!! DOW 22,000 would instantly become DOW 2,200.
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Been reading about and listening to stories on these 401k accounts - supposedly underfunded to the extent of hundreds of billions - perhaps even trillions. The working class is being screwed everywhere they turn now.
Thanks for stopping by sirstackalot.
SK.
Actually, it's the pension funds that are underfunded. 401k's are self funded accounts. Pensions, for the most part, have gone away, but the obligations still exits. Here is an example. Let's say I worked for the US Postal Service starting in 1960. I started when I was 25 and worked there for 40 years straight. All those years, "the company" put money into a pension fund for me so that when I retired, there would be this "pool" of money I could draw from for the rest of my life. Back then, people foolishly allowed their companies to save their money for them. Long story short, those companies either folded or never made payments to the pension fund and used the money for other purposes. Pensioneers = Screwed.
Now, we have these things called 401k's that allow us to take a portion of our income and save it "tax free" for when we retire. Most of that money is invested in the stock market (because that's where our advisers tell us put it......another long story). So either our companies make promises and renege, or we put our savings in the stock market and we get screwed.
Need I say more? STACK ON!!!
Thanks for this information sirstackalot! Tell me - can the 401k's invest in physical gold and silver?