Society of Actuaries 2011 Annual Meeting (Chicago)

Monday, October 17
Session 8: JRM Section Hot Breakfast –  Emerging Risks
Session 13: Opening General Session
Session 17: Is the Arithmetic Mean of Past Returns the Best Estimate of Expected Return?
Session 32: Investment Risk and Return – Theoretically Related – Empirically Not So Much
Session 41: Improving Liability Benchmarks and Pension Risk Management
Session 52: Update on Pre-Qualification and Continuing Education

Tuesday, October 18
Session 56: Education & Research Section Continental Breakfast
Session 62: The Long Run Volatility of Stocks Might Be Higher Than You Think
Session 81: Systemic Risk – Early Warning Indicators
Session 84: Presidential Luncheon
Session 89: How Regulation of Risk Can Affect Risk
Session 99: Rapid Retirement Research Initiative

Wednesday, October 19
Session 114: Investment Section Hot Breakfast – Statistical Arbitrage Is Not Arbitrage
Session 125: Actuarial Efficiency in Modeling and Valuation
Session 132: Looming Demographic Trends and Their Investment Implications
Session 147: ERM – Challenging Old Paradigms – Considering the Human Element

Note:  I was the pension representative on the annual meeting planning committee this year.

Caught between the rock (of plunging equities) and the hard place (of plunging discount rates)

The aggregate deficit in pension plans sponsored by S&P 1500 companies increased by $134 billion during September, from a deficit of approximately $378 billion as of August 31, 2011, to $512 billion as of September 30, according to new figures from Mercer. This deficit corresponds to an aggregate funded ratio of 72% as of September 30, compared to a funded ratio of 79% at August 31, 2011. [...] "The end of September marks the largest deficit since we have been tracking this information," said Jonathan Barry, a partner in Mercer's Retirement Risk and Finance business.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-pension-plan-deficit-at-end-september-reaches-a-post-world-war-ii-high-according-to-mercer-analysis-2011-10-04