I was asked this week whether annuities are now ‘a good investment’. They’ve been recommended very rarely in recent years, since ‘pension freedoms’ allowed pretty much unlimited drawdown on pension funds and anything left to be passed on to beneficiaries free of Inheritance Tax. The rate rises which have been dire news for the rest of the economy mean that the best index-linked annuities now give a return of just under 4%; and that you have to live for just 15, rather than the previous, average of 22 years to get your money’s worth if you give up your pension pot to buy one. In my view, most are still better off not giving up that pot; but if your horse fits that particular course and you want or need some certainty, the annuity is now an option. But still not a great one, in my humble.
“Trade war: Stock markets rally as Trump rows back on Fed and China threats”
Yet another reminder, should one be needed, of how quickly things can and will change. A nod and a wink in the right direction from himself and/ or an underling can provide the solace the money men crave and turn a plummet into, if not a soar at this stage, then certainly a bounce.
