Retirement blues

A slim 36 percent of Americans are financially ready for retirement, according to the latest HSBC Insurance Holdings report.

In “The Future of Retirement: The Power of Planning,” it is estimated that one in five working-age Americans reports not knowing what his or her main source of income will be upon retirement.

“A significant shift in retirement wealth, expectations and outlook is taking place around the world,” said Patrick Cozza, regional head of insurance for HSBC North America, in the report. “There is a large preparedness gap between retirement hopes and actual plans.”

It”™s reported that more than half ”“ 54 percent ”“ of respondents view retirement as a means of freedom. However, 64 percent are concerned they have not saved adequately for their retirement years.

Survey findings shifted profusely with geographic region.

In Malaysia, it was reported that 84 percent of respondents have a financial plan in place for retirement. That number was a bit lower in China, at 76 percent.

In France, only 30 percent indicated having a financial plan for their retirement years.

The declining prevalence of workforce pension plans was a prevailing factor in geographic differences in respondent sentiment.

About 57 percent of respondents in the U.K. report company pensions are becoming less generous; 43 percent reported the same thing in the U.S.; 19 percent in Malaysia and 17 percent in South Korea.

According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute”™s 2011 Retirement Confidence Survey, about one-third of workers and retirees reported using funds from savings to pay for basic expenses last year.

About 27 percent of Americans are “not at all confident” about having adequate money for retirement, up 5 percent from 2009 and 2010.

The 2011 Future of Retirement Report is the sixth report compiled by HSBC Bank since 2005 and is based on the surveying of about 17,000 individuals in 17 nations between the ages of 30 and 60 years old.