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Although the new regulations governing 403(b) defined contribution retirement plans are already in effect, many retirement plan sponsors admit to not fully understanding compliance requirements, according to a survey from the TIAA-CREF Institute.

The euro area (EA16) seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 10.0% in December 2009, compared with 9.9% in November. It was 8.2% in December 2008. The EU27 unemployment rate was 9.6% in December 2009, compared with 9.5% in November. It was 7.6% in December 2008. For the euro area this is the highest rate since August 1998 and for the EU27 since the start of the series in January 2000.

In the third quarter of 2009, the annual growth rate of net disposable income in the euro area equalled -3.2%, compared with -4.8% in the second quarter of 2009. Final consumption in the euro area continued to decrease in the third quarter (-0.2% annually, after -0.3% in the previous quarter). The annual growth rate of gross fixed capital formation was -12.0% in the third quarter of 2009, against -13.5% in the previous quarter. In the third quarter of 2009, the annual growth rate of net saving was -43.0%, up from -63.5% in the second quarter.

As Chief Financial Officers emerge from the ups and downs of 2009 and shift to a new decade, they reveal a continued up-tick of optimism toward both the U.S. economy and their own companies. According to findings from the fourth quarter "CFO Outlook Survey" conducted by Financial Executives International (FEI) and Baruch College's Zicklin School of Business, CFOs are looking up, but remain committed to utilizing some of the important lessons learned during the downturn and keeping companies streamlined. Their views on staffing are mixed. In exploring what steps companies are currently taking toward environmental responsibility, the survey uncovered varying drivers behind those actions.

In November 2009 the working day and seasonally adjusted current account of the euro area was balanced. In the financial account, combined direct and portfolio investment recorded net outflows of EUR 15 billion (non-seasonally adjusted).

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index™ (LEI) for Australia declined 0.3 percent and The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index™ (CEI) increased 0.3 percent in November.

On 1 January 2010, the total number of monetary financial institutions (MFIs) in the euro area stood at 8,076. This comes down to a net decrease of 274 units (3.3%) in comparison with the situation one year ago. The decline was spread across the whole euro area. On 1 January 2010, there were 10,192 MFIs in the European Union (EU), a net decrease of 284 units as compared with the year before.

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index™ (LEI) for Mexico increased 2.3 percent and The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index™ (CEI) increased 0.8 percent in November.

In the third quarter of 2009, in both the euro area (EA16) and the EU27, the seasonally adjusted household saving rate decreased and the household investment rate was almost unchanged. In both zones, the business investment rate and the profit share grew.

In January, the Economic Sentiment Indicator (ESI) rose for the tenth successive month and stood at 97.1 (+2.1 points) in the EU and 95.7 (+1.6) in the euro area. Thus, although the rebound appears to be slowing, the indicator is now back at a level approaching its long-term average in both areas.