Manulife has retained its triple-A credit ratings, according to a report by Standard & Poor’s.
S&P says Manulife’s financial announcement that it would take a $250 million charge in the third quarter would not affect the company’s ratings or outlook on any of its rated insurance subsidiaries.
“We hope that this announcement, along with information we have recently released, will help reassure our clients, shareholders and partners,” says Dominic D’Alessandro, president and chief executive officer of Manulife. “While not immune to the global economy, Manulife has the financial strength and liquidity to successfully weather these markets and leverage opportunities that unsettled times bring.”
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Borealis Extends Offer for Teranet
Borealis, a division of OMERS, has extended its previous offer to acquire all of the outstanding trust units of Teranet Income Fund to Oct. 31, 2008. The original offer was set to expire on Friday.
On Wednesday, Teranet’s board of trustees withdrew its recommendation that unit holders not tender to the offer, and announced it was waiving the applicability of Teranet’s unitholder rights plan and would assist Borealis in its efforts to gain approval from the Province of Ontario.
The purpose of the extension is to allow the other conditions of the offer to be met or waived by such date.
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All other terms and conditions of the takeover bid remain unchanged.
Toronto-based Teranet is currently the sole provider of access to the electronic land registration system for the province of Ontario and provides electronic land-based information and services to the legal, real estate, government, financial and healthcare sectors.
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CTF Criticizes MP Pensions
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) has criticized the $52.4 million in cumulative pension payments that 65 defeated or retiring members of parliament will collect.
“Shed no tears for retiring or defeated MPs,” says CTF acting federal director Adam Taylor. “They will be well looked after by Canadian taxpayers for years to come.”
The CTF recommends the introduction of a matching dollar-for-dollar defined contribution pension arrangement, as opposed to the current defined benefit plan where taxpayers contribute approximately $4 for each $1 an MP contributes.
Defeated or retiring MPs are eligible to collect a pension at age 55 if they have served at least six years in the House of Commons, while MPs who have served less collect a severance equal to 50% of 2008 MP salary.
“With the election of a new government it is time to bring MP pay and pensions in line with public expectations,” says Taylor.
The biggest annual pension recipients include former Prime Minister Paul Martin at $167,051; Joe McGuire at $131,283; Joe Commuzzi at $125,701; Bill Blaikie at $122,224; Tom Wappel at $116,558; and Diane Marleau at $114,330.
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Optimum Asset Management Selects RBC Dexia
RBC Dexia Investor Services has been selected by Optimum Asset Management to provide global custody, fund valuation and unitholder recordkeeping services for the company’s family of pooled funds.
“After a comprehensive review of the capabilities of the various providers in the Canadian marketplace, our management team concluded that RBC Dexia is the ideal company to deliver these investor services for our pooled funds,” says Claude Lamonde, president of Optimum Asset Management.
Based in Montreal, Optimum Asset Management has been a fixed income portfolio manager since 1985 and has more than $2.3 billion in assets under management.
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Manitoba Leads Wage Growth
Manitoba recorded a 2.3% wage increase in 2007, more than double the national average, according to a study.
Prepared by the Chartered Accountants of Manitoba, the MB Check-Up report credits the growth partly to industries such as mining, agriculture, professional, scientific and technical services, which have seen wage increases of 10% to 16%.
“This very strong wage growth came from a combination of solid pay increases which averaged 4.4%, and low provincial inflation which allowed Manitobans to keep more than half of this increase,” says Gary Hannaford, CEO of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Manitoba.
He points out, however, that the province still has the lowest real average hourly wages among the provinces compared in the study. The national average was 7.8% higher than Manitoba’s in 2007.
According to the report, Manitoba ranked first in pay equality and posted an unemployment rate of 4.4% last year, well below the national average of 6%.
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Insurance Sector Needs New Blood
While Canada may be heading into recession, with job losses in manufacturing mounting, there is one industry that seems to struggle filling its ranks: insurance.
“The recruiting pyramid has been flipped upside down,” says Donald Givelos, founder of DGA Careers, which specializes in recruiting for the insurance industry. “Years ago there were 10 candidates for one open position; today there is only one or two good candidates for ten positions.”
Firms hoping to attract the most talented applicants need to develop a continuous formalized recruitment process, rather than simply conducting ad hoc hiring as vacancies arise.
“Although much has changed in the human capital arena over the years, one thing still remains the same,” says Givelos. “Great people are always in demand but now much more difficult to find—especially in insurance.”
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Accounting Change Allows Reclassification
Canada’s Accounting Standards Board (AcSB) has announced amendments to its rules regarding the pricing of financial assets, which will bring Canadian standards inline with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
Under the new accounting rules, financial assets may be reclassified in specified circumstances.
“The amendments allow entities to move financial assets out of categories that require fair value changes to be recognized immediately in net income,” said Paul Cherry, chair of the AcSB. “However, it must be stressed that assets will remain subject to impairment testing and the amendments involve extensive disclosure requirements. Transparency will remain for investors.”
The staff of the AcSB is now considering additional guidance to cover a wider range of investments, as well as possible enhancements to disclosures about liquidity risk and fair value measurements.
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IFB Offers Members LOMA Training
Independent Financial Brokers (IFB) has teamed up with insurance and financial services education provider LOMA to deliver online training to its members.
LOMA will provide access to more than 20 different courses required for Life License Continuing Education in most jurisdictions, covering topics like life, disability and critical illness insurance, investment and underwriting concepts, annuities, sales skills and customer service.
“E-learning is the perfect complement to the one-on-one style of education offered at IFB Summits,” said IFB Education Committee Chairman Doug Vanderburgh. “LOMA is the ideal partner to meet the needs of the association and provide outstanding benefits to its members.”