World stock market fall hits final SSIA payouts

World stock markets have continued to fall today, hitting people’s pension plans and final SSIA payouts.

For the second day in succession, traders’ dealing screens turned red as billions of euro were wiped off the value of the world’s biggest companies, sending shock waves around the world.

The Dublin market was 2.3% lower in early trading today, after more than €4bn was wiped off the value of shares yesterday.

As most pension providers invest heavily in the stock market, any sharp downfall in equities will hit pension values in the short to medium term.

For those with just a few years to go before they draw down their pensions, most experts today said it was best to shift out of equities and into a cash deposit fund to safeguard against sudden market downturns.

Hundreds of euro were also wiped from the value of many SSIAs just a day before they were due to mature.

Liam Boggin, head of research at Merrion Stockbrokers, said the big fall in stock prices could not have come at a worse time as it was now too late for people to switch to a safer cash fund.

Many equity-based SSIAs that are due to mature by the end of this month will have their valuations based on the level at which markets close today.

It’s feared that the 3.5% decline in the Irish market yesterday could have wiped €1,050 from a fund that had been invested just in Irish stocks.

Up until now, SSIA holders who signed up for the equity-based scheme had been doing better than those who took up the Government offer of €1 for every €4 they invested.

Yesterday, a sharp fall in Asian markets worked its way around the world making it the worst day on Wall Street since 2001. It was triggered by fears about the health of the US economy and the possibility that Chinese authorities would crack down on stock market speculation.

Article courtesy of the Evening Echo newspaper.