Parents are spending more and more of their nest egg on their kids' tuition

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Parents are paying for college at the expense of retirement (Think Advisor)

With the cost to attend college skyrocketing, parents are needing additional ways to pay for their children's college tuition, and a majority are turning towards their retirement accounts. Results from a recent T Rowe Price poll show "fifty-two of the parents polled said that it was more important to save for their children's college than it was for their own personal retirements," and "fifty-three percent of parents agreed that they would rather take money from their own retirements than have their children take on student loans."

The impact of rising rates (Investment News)

With many expecting the US Federal Reserve to hike rates in June or September, Investment News examines the impact a rising interest rates would have on different groups. Those with floating-rate debt (home equity loans, private student loans, adjustable rate mortgages, etc) should be particularly worried in a rising rate environment. However, an uptick in interest rates benefits savers and people who are on a fixed income.

China bond ETFs are off to a slow start (Reuters)

Recently launched ETFs focusing on China's corporate debt market are struggling to gain traction among US investors. The opaque nature of companies' balance sheets and worries of a slowing Chinese economy have made for a lukewarm response to the products. Reuters notes, "Van Eck's ChinaAMC China Bond Fund was the first onshore debt ETF," but is averaging volume of less than 10,000 shares per day.

Investing in preferred stocks and securities (Charles Schwab)

Preferred stocks and securities generally offer investors a chance for income because of their high yields. However, yield-hungry investors have pushed yields on these securities to an all-time low in their search for income. With yields ultra-low, and in some cases negative, should investors still participate in the space? Charles Schwab says it "generally makes sense for investors to avoid these low or negative-yielding issues. Focusing on individual preferred securities, actively managed mutual funds or managed accounts-rather than passive, index-tracking mutual funds or exchange-traded funds (ETFs)-may be a better strategy in the current low-yield environment." However, if you do choose to invest in the space be aware of call risk, interest rate risk, and credit risk.

SEC to investigate retirement and cybersecurity practices (Financial Planning)

The Securities and Exchange Commission announced it will examine the way advisors and brokers handle retirement issues and cybersecurity. Specifically on the retirement front, the SEC will look into the "types of advice and product recommendations advisors are offering to investors planning retirement, warning about complex products, hefty fees associated with rollovers, and suitability and account placement, among other issues." The second phase of the process will focus on "how advisors and brokers handle security when they partner with third-party vendors, authentication and access, and firms' incident response plans."