Federal Reserve officials were sharply divided last month when they decided to cut their key policy rate for a second time this year, a split that indicates the path forward for future rate cuts remains cloudy. The Fed’s benchmark rate currently stands in a range of 1.75% to 2% with the next meeting coming on Oct. 29-30.

The Annuity Suitability Working Group wants to make sure its annuity sales model law will not disturb exemptions granted under Dodd-Frank. The group is holding two-hour conference calls in a bid to finally complete the model law before the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ fall meeting in December.

There were 490 announced insurance agency mergers and acquisitions during the first three quarters of the year, according to OPTIS Partners’ M&A database. It was the highest nine-month total ever, beating the 481 deals announced in 2018.

And as time runs out on aging Holocaust survivors, some are trying to recover insurance policies that were not honored by Nazi-era companies, which could be worth at least $25 billion altogether in today’s dollars, according to the Holocaust Survivors’ Foundation USA.

Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell, speaking in Denver on Tuesday, said the nation’s central bank was ready to boost its balance sheet again to address a cash crunch in the financial system. In no sense is this quantitative easing, Powell told members of the National Association for Business Economics, which is holding its annual meeting in Denver.

A broker who sued Ohio National to recoup trail commissions will appeal an Oct. 2 ruling dismissing his lawsuit, his attorney says. Stephen Cook, a Dallas-based advisor affiliated with Triad Advisors, filed a class-action lawsuit filed in March challenging Ohio National’s decision to stop paying trail commissions on certain variable annuities.

A judge for the Southern District of Ohio tossed out a pair of lawsuits by separate brokers last week, bolstering Ohio National’s 2018 decision to eliminate trail commissions on certain variable annuities. But a pair of other lawsuits can proceed, judges have ruled.

An organization of business experts said in a new survey Monday the U.S. economy will grow by less than 2 percent in 2020– the slowest pace in three years. The National Association for Business Economics said in its October outlook it expects U.S. gross domestic product to grow by just 1.8 percent next year– a decline from the 2.1 percent projection it made in June.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Friday that the U.S. economy is facing some risks at the moment, but overall it is in a “good place” and the Fed’s main job is to “keep it there as long as possible.” Powell noted that unemployment is at a half-century low and inflation is running close to the Fed’s 2 percent target.

On Thursday morning, the Institute for Supply Management announced that the nonmanufacturing index hit a three-year low. Economists and traders alike already knew that manufacturing was in a recession as a result of the global slowdown brought on by the U.S. trade war.

The U.S. unemployment rate fell in September to a new five-decade low of 3.5%, while employers added a modest 136,000 jobs. Hiring has slowed this year as the U.S.- China trade war has intensified, global growth has slowed, and businesses have cut back on their investment spending.

LIMRA research finds the top reason employers offer benefits is to retain employees (73%), followed by attracting new employees (56%) and staying competitive in the market (51%). One reason that retaining employees is a significantly bigger motive than attracting new employees comes down to cost.

With the John Hancock Vitality Apple Watch program, life insurance policyholders can walk, run, bike or swim, share their activities and earn points that go toward monthly payments for their watch over a two-year period. The program first launched in 2015 amid some privacy concerns.

The latest wave of selling came after a report showed hiring by U.S. companies slowed more than economists expected last month, with mining and manufacturing particularly weak. It added to worries that shook markets a day earlier, when a reading on U.S. manufacturing growth dropped to its worst level in a decade.

The latest wave of selling came after a report showed hiring by U.S. companies slowed more than economists expected last month, with mining and manufacturing particularly weak. It added to worries that shook markets a day earlier, when a reading on U.S. manufacturing showed the sharpest contraction in a decade.

The Accelerated Underwriting Working Group had its first conference call today and vowed to stick with a deliberative schedule that has the group deferring a work product until next summer. Annual surveys show insurers steadily adopting additional Big Data and accelerated underwriting efforts.

While millennials see investing as the primary vehicle for saving for the future, they also find it overwhelming and intimidating, a new Investopedia survey finds. Nearly half of affluent millennials say they think they will be forced to work beyond retirement age.

The Annuity Suitability Working Group is holding two-hour conference calls in a speeded-up timeline designed to finally complete the model law. The group wants to present the model to the A Committee during the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ fall meeting in December.

Millennials value financial openness in their relationships, with 31 percent saying they would consider breaking up with their partner if they discovered hidden debt or a bad credit score, according to the fifth annual Love and Money Survey by TD Bank.

U.S. factory activity hit its lowest level in more than a decade, as President Donald Trump’s trade wars take a toll on American and global manufacturing. But it appears to be having the opposite effect, spurring the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter-point in September for the second time this year.

While lowering the Fed rate may excite some investors, it may only further hamper those trying to get a home loan, since lower rates can discourage lenders from extending credit to all but the most-qualified buyers. Experts say more is needed to spark the economy for those lower wage earners.

Congressman Chris Collins of New York announced his resignation Monday, a day before he was set to change his plea in an insider trading case in Manhattan federal court.

Just weeks after defense attorneys asked a judge to throw out criminal charges in the insider trading case against Chris Collins, the Republican congressman is expected to enter a guilty plea.

As concerns about cyber threats have grown, a higher percentage of businesses across nearly every industry reported taking proactive measures to safeguard against cyber risks, including buying cyber insurance.

Americans’ confidence in their ability to pay their credit card bills continued to decline in September, according to a new report from CompareCards.com, as fewer cardholders manage to pay their statement balances in full at the end of the month.

A new study finds that more and more seniors are delaying retirement to work longer. The labor force participation rate for the 65-74 age group alone has increased by nine percentage points, from 18% to 27%, in the past 20 years. For the 75+ group, the labor force participation rate nearly doubled over the same time period.

The Trump administration’s trade war with China is largely to blame for stocks’ screeching halt on Wall Street since April, analysts and economists say. The Trump trade war’s drag on Wall Street is a dramatic turnaround for investors, who survived a whip-saw winter that saw the S&P plunge late last year only to recover at the start of this year.

Representing the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Eugene Scalia played a major role in convincing an appeals court judicial panel to vacate the Obama Labor Department’s fiduciary rule. The DOL is working on a replacement rule to be unveiled by the end of the year.

Most employers said they offer physical (63%), financial (65%) and mental (74%) wellness programs. Organizations also cover at least some of the cost for these physical and financial (51% each) and mental (64%) wellness resources. The survey found that employers plan further benefits’ offerings in the months ahead.

The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America supports the bill, which would protect agents and brokers who write insurance coverage for legitimate cannabis-related businesses from criminal prosecution and civil liability. The bill passed the House with a vote of 321-103.

The Securities and Exchange Commission was accused of failing its mission as “Wall Street’s cop” in the first appearance of the full SEC board in Congress since 2007.

LIMRA research shows 26% of all U.S. workers participate in gig work either as their primary job or as a secondary source of income and almost three-quarters of these workers believe they will continue working in this capacity over the next five years. Lack of access to benefits that are usually offered to traditional workers is one of the big challenges of this work.

Bernie Sanders, a Vermont senator, announced a plan Tuesday to tax the nation’s wealthiest households. He vows to go further than Warren and generate more than $4 trillion over the next decade, substantially reducing billionaires’ fortunes. Whether any such plan can get through Congress is debatable.

Stopping just short of predicting a recession in the U.S. through its 2021 forecast horizon, the UCLA Anderson Forecast, in its third quarterly report of 2019, expects the national economy to slow to 0.4% in the second half of 2020, before rebounding to 2.1% in 2021.

A new study finds the majority of Americans are stressed about their financial situations, with 3 out of 4 Americans wishing they could get a financial planning do-over. However, according to the survey by the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors, the outlook isn’t all grim.

Almost two-thirds of American workers did not automatically choose the same benefits as the previous year, indicating they are putting more thought into their choices during open enrollment, a new survey released by Prudential Financial shows. Also, a majority of American workers (58%) said that if auto-enrolled in an insurance policy, they would likely keep it.

Elizabeth Warren’s plan to pay for a series of far-reaching government programs with a 2% wealth tax has liberal audiences chanting ” 2 cents” in much the same way that President Trump’s vow to build a wall along the southern border led to a “Build that wall” battle cry.

Advisors say being easily influenced by recent news, playing it overly safe and seeking information that reinforces established perceptions are the most common behavioral biases that impact their clients’ investing decisions.

A few hours before a divided Federal Reserve trimmed interest rates last week to keep the economy primed, the boss at one of the world’ s biggest banks addressed whether the U.S. was in danger of slipping into a recession. “My own gut tells me it’ s not imminent,” JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said.

No more are actively managed funds the kings of Wall Street. Index funds usurped actively managed funds for the first time this week, confirming a major shift in the way people invest. As of Aug. 31, index funds held $4.27 trillion in assets, compared to $4.25 trillion currently in active funds, Morningstar research found.

The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors is joining forces with the American Council of Life Insurers to coordinate advocacy efforts in seven states in 2020, with plans to expand those efforts into the remaining states in 2021.

The combined sales of fixed and variable annuities totaled $60.7 billion, compared to sales of $57.7 billion in the first quarter of 2019, according to data reported by Beacon Research and Morningstar.

The U.S. health insurance segment has overcome early issues associated with The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and in the last two years has posted its highest underwriting and net incomes since the law went into effect at the start of 2014, according to a new AM Best report.

The Federal Reserve has cut its benchmark interest rate again, big news for the U.S. economy but something that will likely have a muted impact on Americans’ personal finances, experts say. That’s because the reduction doesn’t offset the increases of recent years. The central bank on Wednesday reduced its key rate by a quarter-point to a range of 1.75% to 2%.

The Federal Reserve announced its decision today to cut interest rates. The move had been expected and while President Donald Trump urged a rate cut, he still might not be happy with the decision.

The Accelerated Underwriting Working Group is chaired by Robert H. Muriel, director of the Illinois Department of Insurance. It will consider the use of external data and data analytics in accelerated life underwriting and possibly draft guidance for states in 2020.

The Federal Reserve looks poised to cut interest rates for a second time Wednesday to help extend the economic expansion in the face of global weakness, President Donald Trump’s trade war with China and geopolitical risks such as the attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities.

After roughly 18 months of meetings, the group is in tentative agreement on a best interest standard for annuity sales. But New York officials are adamant that the standard apply to in-force policies, a move other regulators are hesitant to make.

No less a figure than former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan has suggested that it’s just a matter of time before negative rates come to the United States. Last week, the ECB deepened its negative rates as part of a package to fend off a recession. Negative rates represent another technique by which central banks, such as the Federal Reserve, try to spark the economy.

The U.S. economy has experienced 10 recessions since 1950, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research. On average, the market declines 5.3% during an economic recession. The worst drop totaled a loss of -36.4% and the stock market’s best gain totaled +16.6%.

For a second straight time, the Federal Reserve is set to cut interest rates this week to try to protect the economy from the consequences of a global slowdown and President Donald Trump’s trade war with China. Will Trump achieve at least a truce in his conflict with China and diminish a threat overhanging the U.S. economy?

—When the Census Bureau reported an increase in the number of people without health insurance in America, it sent political partisans reaching for talking points on the Obama-era health law and its travails. But the new numbers suggest that fears of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown may be a more significant factor in the slippage.

The Federal Reserve is scheduled to deliver an update on its interest rate policy Wednesday. The Fed is widely expected to announce another quarter-point rate cut as officials move to sustain the nation’s economic expansion. The Fed’s benchmark rate is now at 2% to 2.25%.

Bank execs set growth expectations for the next three years that were lower than they projected at the firm’s last Investor Day event in September 2016. They said they don’t believe the U.S. will slip into recession, but they do expect slow growth and that the Federal Reserve will cut its main interest rate to 1.5% by early next year from 2.25% now.

Advisors are fighting their own battles with the rapid pace of change, disengagement among their team members, and a churn of conflict keeping their message from reaching their prospects and clients, said decorated war veteran Scott Mann. Humans are “meaning, seeking, emotional, social creatures,” he added.

For the first time in a decade, the number of Americans without health insurance has risen, by about 2 million people in 2018, according to the annual U.S. Census Bureau report released Tuesday. The Census found that 8.5% of the U.S. population went without medical insurance for all of 2018, up from 7.9% in 2017.

President Trump fired a new salvo at the Federal Reserve bankers for not juicing the economy by slashing interest rates to nothing– or even below. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin insisted Tuesday that the president does not want to oust Fed chairman Jerome Powell, whom he appointed.

The European Central Bank appears to be preparing a new shot of stimulus to prop up the economy, amid broader questions about whether central banks like the ECB and the U.S. Federal Reserve can re-energize global growth on their own. That could all help the economy by making money cheaper to borrow, a policy that President Donald Trump has endorsed.