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(April 30, 2008) BMO Financial Group has established a national study institute aimed at providing Canadian boomers with research on trends that will have a direct impact on their retirement.

The BMO Retirement Institute will analyze issues such as caregiving, managing health, and the challenges of living retirement as a single person. As part of its mandate, the institute is launching a series of brief reports called Connecting Insights, which will help Canadians become more familiar with some of the more complex issues associated with retirement.

The institute’s first report, “Assuming More Responsibility for Retirement,” provides an introduction to the changing nature of retirement, highlighting recent shifts in pension plan trends and the importance of ensuring retirees have enough money to last them through what has become a lengthier life stage.

The report also examines the prospect of future retirees having to shoulder more of the financial responsibility for their retirement than previous generations. It also explores the important retirement decisions boomers will face, and offers information on the efficacy of some of today’s financial planning products.

With boomers facing increased responsibility for their retirement, they will have to make key decisions about when they can afford to retire, and what they should do with their assets and savings at retirement to create a stable income.

Meanwhile, fewer Canadians are covered by a registered pension plan — between 1991 and 2004, the number of paid workers covered by an RPP fell from 45.3% to 39%. At the same time, the proportion of workers covered by defined benefit pension plans is declining.

Canadians don’t seem to be taking measures to compensate for insufficient employer pensions. A recent study by the Canadian Institute of Actuaries and the University of Waterloo concluded that two-thirds of Canadian households expecting to retire in 2030 are not saving enough to meet necessary living expenses such as food, shelter, clothing, transportation, healthcare, energy and taxes.

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GMP expands Montreal presence

(April 30, 2008) GMP Capital Trust has announced the opening of a new office in Montreal, along with a new branch of GMP Private Client, the firm’s first foray into the Quebec wealth management market. Until now, GMP has maintained an investment bank and trading office in the city, under the GMP Securities brand.

“We are very pleased to begin operations in Quebec, a market we have had our eye on for some time,” said James Werry, CEO, GMP Private Client. “Our wealth management business has experienced tremendous growth since its inception less than three years ago. We look forward to building our brand by continuing to recruit top advisory teams and by offering complete wealth management solutions and personalized strategies to clients in Quebec.”

The new private client office will start with two investment advisory teams, and will be headed by Benoit Marcotte.

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AGF expands Prato’s role

(April 30, 2008) AGF Funds has announced that portfolio manager Caterina Prato will join veteran Bob Farquharson on the AGF Canadian Small Cap fund and the AGF portion of Harmony Americas Small Cap Equity Pool.

Prato already manages the AGF Canada Class, AGF Canadian Stock Fund and AGF Canadian Stock Class, along with Martin Hubbes, CIO and executive vice-president of AGF.

“I am delighted to expand Caterina’s role as we continue to build a strong team of talented investment professionals at AGF,” said Hubbes. “This appointment reinforces our commitment to provide excellence in money management.”

At the same time, AGF also announced the departure of James Sorbo, effective April 30, 2008.

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MX, TSX reveal merger payout

(April 30, 2008) The results of last evening’s election by Montréal Exchange Inc. (MX) shareholders, with respect to the proposed amalgamation between MX and TSX Group Inc. (TSX), were announced today with a provisional agreement to move forward with the deal.

The amalgamation agreement provides that the maximum number of TSX Group common shares to be issued to MX shareholders under the amalgamation is 15,346,000, and set the maximum cash payable to MX shareholders at $428.2 million.

As a result, approximately 15.32 million TSX Group shares will be issued, and $428.2 million will be paid in cash to MX shareholders upon the completion of the amalgamation on May 1, 2008.

For shareholders who elected to receive cash, this sum represents $16.26 in cash and 0.4540 of a common share of TSX Group to all MX shareholders, to be paid by May 6, 2008. Those who elected to receive shares of TSX Group will receive 0.7784 of a TSX Group share for each MX common share.

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Transparency spreads: Milken report

(April 30, 2008) Global investors looking for a positive trend have some good news: the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards has increased financial transparency and lowered risk for investors, as measured by the 2008 Opacity Index, released today by the Milken Institute.

According to the report, opacity works like a hidden tax on business, with costs in terms of economic growth, corporate profits and investor returns.

Additional improvements in corporate governance and compliance with voluntary codes of conduct have helped raise the scores of most of the 48 countries ranked by risk in the index.

In the 2008 rankings, the United States fell to 13th place from 4th place because of turbulence in the markets and other factors, including over-regulation due to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

Finland and Hong Kong were the top-ranked economies, while Canada failed to crack the top ten list.

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House prices hold value

(April 30, 2008) House prices have remained a bedrock of value for Canadians over the past year, despite a steady flood of gloomy media headlines about the slowing Canadian economy, the volatility of the world’s stock markets, and the United States’ housing crash and credit crisis, according to a national survey by Century 21 Canada brokers.

The Century 21 Canada 2008 Spring National House Price Survey of typical homes in 198 neighbourhoods within 66 cities across Canada shows that prices over the past year have increased in 167 neighbourhoods, and declined in 21 neighbourhoods.

The survey found that the largest price increases over the past year occurred in Saskatchewan, where jobs in the booming oil and gas, grain, and potash industries are attracting record numbers of new residents.

Other strong markets across the country include Winnipeg, which increased as much as 34%, Lethbridge, St. John’s, and Vancouver.

(04/30/08)