Phil Davis

An industry committee that advises the Labor Department wants clearer guidance on how sponsors of retirement plans should fulfill their duty to monitor providers' compliance with the department's fiduciary rule. "[U]ncertainty as to plan fiduciaries' obligations to monitor service providers' adherence to the rule has caused some plan fiduciaries to consider directing substantial resources toward compliance costs rather than toward providing benefits," according to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act Industry Committee. ThinkAdvisor (free registration) (18 Aug.)

UK Prime Minister Theresa May's government plans to continue publishing papers this week explaining its negotiation positions on Brexit issues. The initiative comes as media reports indicate that Cabinet ministers are worried about the slow progress of Brexit talks with the EU. The Independent (London) (tiered subscription model) (20 Aug.)

The European Central Bank may have to taper its bond-buying efforts next year regardless of its inflation target as available bonds in the eurozone start to run low. Financial Times (tiered subscription model) (20 Aug.)