What's your prediction on the Australian Dollar?

[eastwest101]

I was playing golf with a friend last Sunday. He has just turned 60. He was a school teacher until 8-9 years ago when he gave it away and became a postie for a few years until a few years ago. He is now getting a really nice pension from State Super (?) which is equivalent to ~80% of the average of his final 3 years of service. He almost earns as much as me and pays much less tax.

Sounds like a public service defined benefits pension, that's really nice for your mate but the trouble is that if everyone got it this would have to be paid for by taxes. There's a reason why a lot of these have been closed off over the years - because they cost an enormous amount of money and are a massive burden on governments and future tax payers. With more people retiring and less working age people due to demographics that's a recepie for higher taxes, something which you complain about.

 

[JohnK]

Sounds like a public service defined benefits pension, that's really nice for your mate but the trouble is that if everyone got it this would have to be paid for by taxes. There's a reason why a lot of these have been closed off over the years - because they cost an enormous amount of money and are a massive burden on governments and future tax payers. With more people retiring and less working age people due to demographics that's a recepie for higher taxes, something which you complain about.

Understood. There has to be something better than what we have right now. I simply do not have enough to retire on superannuation alone. In my opinion, and no one has to agree, superannuation funds are grossly mismanaged. I don't want to work until I am 68. On my salary I should have had enough to retire at 55-60. Just as well my own investments have performed better.

And the last thing I need is a low AUD exchange rate. I have worked hard and want to enjoy my retirement not struggle through it.

 

[moa999]

Worked fine when people worked till 60 then passed on by 70.. Much more expensive now

 

[anat0l]

Understood. There has to be something better than what we have right now. I simply do not have enough to retire on superannuation alone. In my opinion, and no one has to agree, superannuation funds are grossly mismanaged. I don't want to work until I am 68. On my salary I should have had enough to retire at 55-60. Just as well my own investments have performed better.

And the last thing I need is a low AUD exchange rate. I have worked hard and want to enjoy my retirement not struggle through it.

The low exchange rate is only an issue if you want to take the money out of the country. That affects everyone, not just those retiring.

There are self managed funds these days; I don't know exactly how they work, but my impression is that whoever owns it can control how the money is invested, even if this means simply cash (i.e. you get your 2-3% or whatever with the bank, with either nil or little fees).

You may or may not have to work until you are 68, but our generation has been told that we most probably will have to and even beyond that. The current taxable population will likely go through quite a bit of overall financial stress until the bulk of the baby boomers die.

My dad has a rather more astute plan (in his opinion). He has planned out the money he has saved so he will live to approximately 85. He intends to spend that money within that time frame, and if he hasn't died by then, he will kill himself.

 

[whatmeworry]

Yes. Welcome to neoliberalism. Thirty years of failure and counting.

The British and Americans have so failed their working class by pandering to their 0.1 percent, yet certain people in this country are rushing to emulate their failed financial polices.

 

[Awesom Andy]

The British and Americans have so failed their working class by pandering to their 0.1 percent, yet certain people in this country are rushing to emulate their failed financial polices.

The people who make the decisions are usually in that 0.1%. Obviously, the working class doesn't matter to them. I'm only about half way to the current retirement age, and I'm sure by the time I reach it, the bar will be a lot higher.

 

[Pushka]

The low exchange rate is only an issue if you want to take the money out of the country. That affects everyone, not just those retiring.

There are self managed funds these days; I don't know exactly how they work, but my impression is that whoever owns it can control how the money is invested, even if this means simply cash (i.e. you get your 2-3% or whatever with the bank, with either nil or little fees).

You may or may not have to work until you are 68, but our generation has been told that we most probably will have to and even beyond that. The current taxable population will likely go through quite a bit of overall financial stress until the bulk of the baby boomers die.

My dad has a rather more astute plan (in his opinion). He has planned out the money he has saved so he will live to approximately 85. He intends to spend that money within that time frame, and if he hasn't died by then, he will kill himself.

I totally get your Dad. Saves a lot of worry.
Current bank interest is way below 3% though.

 

[Flashback]

I totally get your Dad. Saves a lot of worry.
Current bank interest is way below 3% though.

If you're getting less than 3% on bank interest in Aus you're not doing it right

 

[love_the_life]

Sounds like a public service defined benefits pension, that's really nice for your mate but the trouble is that if everyone got it this would have to be paid for by taxes. There's a reason why a lot of these have been closed off over the years - because they cost an enormous amount of money and are a massive burden on governments and future tax payers. With more people retiring and less working age people due to demographics that's a recepie for higher taxes, something which you complain about.

To me it sounds more like he has amalgamated his super into an allocated pension. He would have not been eligible for the CSS which was the one which gave the pension; if he joined the PS about 8 or so years ago, his super would have been the PSSap - Public Service Accumulation Plan - no pension just a lump sum. Education is a state system and I'm not 100% sure of what the plan would have been. He may have been able to claim a pension through it.
Given he would have been paying super for many years, he would have a good amount to draw on.

 

[JohnK]

To me it sounds more like he has amalgamated his super into an allocated pension. He would have not been eligible for the CSS which was the one which gave the pension; if he joined the PS about 8 or so years ago, his super would have been the PSSap - Public Service Accumulation Plan - no pension just a lump sum. Education is a state system and I'm not 100% sure of what the plan would have been. He may have been able to claim a pension through it.
Given he would have been paying super for many years, he would have a good amount to draw on.

School teacher all his life until he gave it away to become a postie.

 

[marki]

AUD EUR jumped overnight 0.691 then after that just kept on dropping .....hitting 0.6681 within two hours if not quicker much further below the previous steady state rate of 0.6822 (about) ...... not sure why the Aussie is still cash rate king the ECB has negative interest rates .......go figure we got hit on all the other cross rates too.

 

[andye]

AUD EUR jumped overnight 0.691 then after that just kept on dropping .....hitting 0.6681 within two hours if not quicker much further below the previous steady state rate of 0.6822 (about) ...... not sure why the Aussie is still cash rate king the ECB has negative interest rates .......go figure we got hit on all the other cross rates too.

ECB added some stimulus then said they weren't going to cut interest rates anymore

 

[marki]

This will probably be it ...no wonder it did not last ...... I was not quick enough in catching the high....

ECB added some stimulus then said they weren't going to cut interest rates anymore

 

[drsmithy]

The biggest mistake was privatising super. Private super has totally lost the way.

I was playing golf with a friend last Sunday. He has just turned 60. He was a school teacher until 8-9 years ago when he gave it away and became a postie for a few years until a few years ago. He is now getting a really nice pension from State Super (?) which is equivalent to ~80% of the average of his final 3 years of service. He almost earns as much as me and pays much less tax. His wife an ex customs director with the same sort of deal.

My superannuation is paying for the private super fat cats Christmas party and First class flights on their work trips. Gross negligence.

Privatising Super has done exactly what it was intended to do, which was funnel money into the financial sector, allowing them to skim the people's wealth without having to do anything.

Hence the ongoing hostility to industry funds.

 

[JohnK]

Privatising Super has done exactly what it was intended to do, which was funnel money into the financial sector, allowing them to skim the people's wealth without having to do anything.

Hence the ongoing hostility to industry funds.

Well that's extremely sad that we sit back and allow these things to happen. If this is democracy at its finest then it's rubbish.

Mine comes out in 7 years. But where to go?

 

[whatmeworry]

I find it baffling they have negative interest rates, amid all the money printing by the ECB.

Isn't this just setting themselves up for a huge fall?

 

[Awesom Andy]

I find it baffling they have negative interest rates, amid all the money printing by the ECB.

Isn't this just setting themselves up for a huge fall?

It's simply fire fighting - they can't worry about what's going to happen in 1 year's time since they're all too busy just trying to keep it running in 1 month's time.

 

[drsmithy]

I find it baffling they have negative interest rates, amid all the money printing by the ECB.

Isn't this just setting themselves up for a huge fall?

The economy is demand - ie: spending - driven.

Negative interest rates are there to "encourage" people to spend by punishing "saving".

But the problem is not that people don't want to spend, it's that they don't have any money left to spend.

We are reaching the endgame of supply-side economics - presumably the Reagan- and Thatcher-ites are all busily giving each other high-fives about how well they've crushed wages all over the world. But the problem remains - once you've transferred all the wealth and income to a handful of people, who's going to buy stuff ?

Generally, it results in (world) war.

 

[Cruiser Elite]

Generally, it results in (world) war.

Well that is a new slant Dr Doom - you previously had the A$ at about 5.3USc and then Australian housing falling off the cliff to extent Point Piper mansions would be worth less than the deposit on a coke bottle in SA now we are all off to war!

OK I exaggerate a bit - but war? Really?

 

[Deleted member 6404]

Well War might be the fixer to all the worlds problems, winner takes all are at stake, its possible there are enough nut cases out there all it takes is a button push and its on for young and old.
Who would have ever forecast negative interest to happen in the FREE world how do we educate our future generations about wealth building when the financial system is now truly broken for the masses and only benefiting the handful who control the worlds wealth, and with cashless looming just around the corner its all over bar the shouting for controlling your own wealth. Good luck to the next generation who are blinded by the ease of just using the plastic. By the time they wake up it will much too late. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ