Business : Personal Finance

The former transition countries of Central, Eastern, and Southern Europe (CESE) inherited defined benefit public pension systems financed on a pay-as-you-go basis. Under central planning, these systems exhibited fiscal strains which worsened during the early years of the transition and became unsustainable under a market economy and projected population aging. All CESE countries introduced reforms that varied but typically focused on issues of sustainability rather than benefit adequacy.Nine case studies—Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Croatia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Serbia—suggest the following broad policy conclusions: (i) fiscal sustainability has improved in most study countries, but few are fully prepared for the inevitability of population aging; (ii) the linkage between contributions and benefits has been strengthened, and pension system designs are better suited to market conditions; (iii) levels of income replacement are generally adequate for all but some categories of workers (including those with intermittent formal sector employment or low lifetime wages); (iv) further reforms to cope with population aging should focus on extending labor force participation by the elderly to avoid benefit cuts that could undermine adequacy and very high contribution rates that could discourage formal sector employment; and (v) more decisive financial market reforms are needed for funded provisions to deliver on the return expectations of participants. more...

Price: $39.95

Population aging will affect the performance of pension funds and financial markets in the former transition economies and require determined policy actions to complete financial market development and to promote financial literacy through education. more...

Price: $25.00

ALL ABOUT . . . SERIES. All About. EXCHANGE-TRADED FUNDS. Exchange-traded funds, priced like a stock and traded continuously throughout the day, are the hottest thing in investing today. All About Exchange-Traded Funds is one of the first introductory guides to provide investors with the nuts-and-bolts aspects of ETFs, from various types and basic trading rules to effective trading strategies for building core assets. more...

Price: $18.95

You work hard -- really hard -- but it seems like there's never enough. Never enough to cover all the bills. Never enough to relax and have some fun. Never enough to save some real money. What has gone wrong? What is the secret that you haven't figured out? In All Your Worth, Elizabeth Warren and Amelia Warren Tyagi -- mother/daughter authors of the acclaimed The Two-Income Trap -- tell you the truth about money. more...

Price: $14.00

America’s Bubble Economy is the first book to focus on several simultaneous financial bubbles that are interacting to temporarily boost—and ultimately threaten—the United States and world economies. Filled with expert analysis and straight talk, this book will show you how to turn the coming economic transformation into a once-in-a-lifetime wealth-building opportunity. more...

Price: $24.95