Financial Intel Monthly

The Markets (as of market close July 23, 2021)

After more than four years of international negotiations taking place mostly behind the scenes, 132 countries — representing more than 90% of worldwide gross domestic product (GDP) and including the Group of 20 (G20) large economies — recently agreed to a new plan to reform international tax laws in an effort to "ensure that multinational enterprises pay a fair share of tax wherever they operate."[1] If you work for a U.S. multinational enterprise such as SONY, your company may be subject to the new tax rules.

Chevron interest rates decreased 0.07% in the second segment for those who commence their benefit in September 2021. This is the first time in several months that interest rates have dropped, and the result will be slightly larger lump-sums for those retiring in September.  When Chevron employees elect the month they would like to begin their pension, Chevron looks back to the third, fourth, and fifth month's rates to calculate the rates used for the pension disbursement. When interest rates move up or down, your pension lump sum amount will move in an inverse relationship. Over the last year, interest rates have dropped dramatically which has greatly increased many lump sum payments. This trend culminated in record lows for individuals who commenced their benefits in December of 2020. However, since December, rates have to increased, causing a reduction in lump-sums.

Have you noticed that gas prices have skyrocketed in your area?

Well, on May 7, 2021, the Colonial Pipeline, which carries almost half of the East Coast's fuel supply from Texas to New Jersey, shut down operations in response to a ransomware attack. Colonial paid a $4.4 million ransom not long after discovering the attack, and the pipeline was reopened within a week. While there was enough stored fuel to weather the outage, panic buying caused gasoline shortages on the East Coast and pushed the national average price of gasoline over $3.00 per gallon for the first time since 2014.[1]

Interest rates increased, which will minimally reduce the value of ExxonMobil employees' pension lump-sums. Over the course of 2020, interest rates at ExxonMobil dropped dramatically, which greatly increased many lump sum payments. This culminated in record low rates for individuals that commence their benefits in the first quarter of 2021. However, we saw an increase in rates for the second & third quarters of 2021 and now fourth quarter rates have risen slightly higher. Rates rose roughly 0.04% in the most significant segment, in the last quarter.  

If you pay attention to financial news, you are probably seeing a lot of discussion about inflation, which has reared its head in the U.S. economy after being mostly dormant for the last decade. In May 2021, the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), often called headline inflation, rose at an annual rate of 5.0%, the highest 12-month increase since August 2008.[1]

Interest rates are trending in the right direction for ConocoPhillips employees, considering the lump sum option on their pension payment. Interest rates dropped for individuals that commence their benefits in Q4 2021. Over the course of 2020, interest rates dropped dramatically, which greatly increased many lump sum payments. However, interest rates have been on the rise since Q1 2021. A drop in Q4 indicates a shift in the trajectory of interest rates. If this continues lump-sums will rise again in Q1 2022. Should you desire to take your pension as a lump sum, ConocoPhillips will use interest rates and your age to calculate your lump sum payment. When interest rates move up or down, your pension lump sum amount will move in an inverse relationship (except for Cash Balance Pension Lump Sum payouts).

After two years of decreases, interest rates on federal student loans are set to increase almost a full percentage point for the 2021-2022 school year.1 The interest rates on federal student loans are reset each year after the May auction of the 10-year Treasury note.

The rates apply to new federal student loans issued on or after July 1, 2021, through June 30, 2022. The interest rate is fixed for the life of the loan.

The housing market has been on fire recently and many AT&T employees are becoming concerned we may be in the midst of another housing bubble. The Retirement Group has many clients who work for AT&T, and a significant amount of them are considering retiring in 2021 because they can downsize their home and use their increased equity for retirement.