US Retirement Plan Accounts: Contribution Limits for 2021

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The contribution limits for 2021 for the various retirement plans has been released by the Internal Revenue Service(IRS). The contribution limits for Traditional IRA and Roth IRA stands at $6,000 per person (provided one is qualified to contribute). The catchup contribution limit for those aged 50 or higher is $1,000. For college savings, the Coverdell ESA contribution limit also stays at $2,000.

Every year the folks at Lord Abbett publish a simple and easy to use cheat sheet listing all the retirement plans and the latest contribution limits. This list is very useful for investors. The following table shows the contribution limits for 2021. As we head towards the end of this year, its wise to plan ahead for 2021.

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Source: Lord Abbett

Note: This post is applicable for US residents only

Download: Contribution Limits for 2021 for Retirement Plan Accounts (pdf version)

Health Epidemics and MSCI World Index Performance 1970-2020

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I have written a few articles earlier on pandemics and equity markets which can be found here and here and here. The following chart shows the major health epidemics and the performance of the MSCI World Index since 1970. The index has powered through global health epidemics such as Dengue, Zika Virus, SARS, Swine Flu, etc.

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Source: Cliffwater via Bourbon Financial Management

Tourism as a Percentage of GDP for Select Countries

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Tourism is a major industry in many countries. The below chart from OECD shows tourism as a percentage of GDP for select countries. Tourism accounts for 12.5% and 11.8% of the GDP for Portugal and Spain respectively. Other economies with high high dependence on this industry include France, Mexico and Greece. Tourism is 2.8% of the US economy.

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Source: OECD