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CNN Live At Daybreak
More Americans Raiding Retirement Accounts After Switching Jobs
Aired November 17, 2003 - 06:47 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Time now for a little 'Business Buzz.' More and more Americans are raiding their retirement accounts after switching jobs. Boy does that sound like a bad move.
Carrie Lee has more from the Nasdaq market site.
Is it?
CARRIE LEE, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: It is a bad move, Carol, pretty much anyway you slice it. Because not only are you incurring tax penalties, but you are also jeopardizing future gains in your retirement plan.
Now "USA Today" has compiled some not so heartening statistics. First of all saying that after nearly 20 years of gains, the number of people participating in 401(k)s has dropped over the past two years. Last year falling to 72.6 percent.
Some other numbers here even less encouraging. Overall, just 42 percent of people set aside money for retirement. That is the lowest level since 1980. Just 39 percent of Americans think they'll have enough money to live comfortably in retirement. This according to RoperASW. And then finally, only 30 percent of Americans count -- can count on income from savings and investments in retirement.
Here's maybe the most scary thing in this report, Carol, some people feel that since their homes have risen in value over the past couple of years, they are counting on rising home values to replace their retirement nest egg. So definitely people need to be very careful if that's kind of the way they are thinking when they get into their older years.
COSTELLO: Yes, you got to bet on the sure thing as you age, don't you?
LEE: Absolutely.
COSTELLO: Quick look at the futures.
LEE: Futures look very weak this morning. We saw some selling on Friday. The Dow, the Nasdaq, the S&P 500 all ending lower. You can see the Nasdaq leading the way to the downside, almost over 2 percent. This morning things look very weak.
One stock we're going to be watching is Lowe's, the home improvement retailer. Wall Street looking for an improvement in profits over last year. Home Depot, by the way, reports tomorrow. Always interesting to track the rivalry between these two names -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Yes, thanks. Carrie Lee live from the Nasdaq market site.
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Jobs >
Aired November 17, 2003 - 06:47 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Time now for a little 'Business Buzz.' More and more Americans are raiding their retirement accounts after switching jobs. Boy does that sound like a bad move.
Carrie Lee has more from the Nasdaq market site.
Is it?
CARRIE LEE, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: It is a bad move, Carol, pretty much anyway you slice it. Because not only are you incurring tax penalties, but you are also jeopardizing future gains in your retirement plan.
Now "USA Today" has compiled some not so heartening statistics. First of all saying that after nearly 20 years of gains, the number of people participating in 401(k)s has dropped over the past two years. Last year falling to 72.6 percent.
Some other numbers here even less encouraging. Overall, just 42 percent of people set aside money for retirement. That is the lowest level since 1980. Just 39 percent of Americans think they'll have enough money to live comfortably in retirement. This according to RoperASW. And then finally, only 30 percent of Americans count -- can count on income from savings and investments in retirement.
Here's maybe the most scary thing in this report, Carol, some people feel that since their homes have risen in value over the past couple of years, they are counting on rising home values to replace their retirement nest egg. So definitely people need to be very careful if that's kind of the way they are thinking when they get into their older years.
COSTELLO: Yes, you got to bet on the sure thing as you age, don't you?
LEE: Absolutely.
COSTELLO: Quick look at the futures.
LEE: Futures look very weak this morning. We saw some selling on Friday. The Dow, the Nasdaq, the S&P 500 all ending lower. You can see the Nasdaq leading the way to the downside, almost over 2 percent. This morning things look very weak.
One stock we're going to be watching is Lowe's, the home improvement retailer. Wall Street looking for an improvement in profits over last year. Home Depot, by the way, reports tomorrow. Always interesting to track the rivalry between these two names -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Yes, thanks. Carrie Lee live from the Nasdaq market site.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Jobs >
