雙語社評齊齊聽

英語 (足本收聽)

普通話 (足本收聽)

【明報專訊】THE MANDATORY PROVIDENT FUND SCHEMES AUTHORITY (MPFA) has suggested that all MPF schemes be required to include as the default investment strategy a "core fund" option, whose management fee must be capped at 0.75% a year. This is the first time a major reform for regulating the MPF system by legislation has been proposed in fifteen years. However, whether the reform will allay the criticism that the MPF system is "unfair" and "unjust" depends on whether citizens set great store by and support it.

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積金局建議所有強積金計劃都要設立「核心基金」的預設投資策略，限定每年管理費上限不能高於0.75%。這是15年來首次立法規管強積金計劃的重要變革，可是能否減少強積金被指「不公平、不公義」的質疑，還須視乎新措施會否得到市民的重視和支持。

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High management fees and low returns are what MPF schemes are mainly criticised for. Management fees eat away at employees' contributions, and it is quite common for some MPF schemes to record negative rates of return after management fees are deducted. As of the end of last year, MPF assets totalled $560 billion. Last year, as the average charge was 1.65%, trustees, fund managers and other stakeholders together took more than $9 billion. The huge sum is employees' hard-earned money. However, last year the overall MPF rate of return was only 1.52%, even lower than the average charge. In other words, the investment returns from all the MPF accounts, which number around 2.7 million, were less than $9 billion last year. It can thus be seen how unfairly most returns on MPF investments are distributed.

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強積金一直被詬病之處是收費高、回報低，特別是收費率之高，蠶食打工仔的供款，個別強積金計劃扣除管理費之後，回報率出現負數已屬司空見慣的事。截至去年底，強積金總體資產總值約5600億元，按去年平均開支1.65%計算，委託人、基金經理等持份者共收取了超過90億元。這筆巨款是打工仔的血汗錢，而去年強積金整體回報率只有1.52%，連平均開支也不如，即是全部270萬個強積金戶口，去年投資所得也不到90億元。強積金大部分收益流向之不公平，於此可見一斑。

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The management fees of the core fund suggested will be capped by law at 0.75%. The rate is reasonable compared with those of other schemes, which easily top 1%. However, in other places there are funds whose management fees are as low as 0.2% to 0.3%. Compared with them, the management fees of the core fund will still be high. Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Ceajer Chan believes 0.75% is just the initial level of the cap, which can be lowered in the future. Furthermore, the MPFA suggests the investment risks of the core fund be revised downwards as the participant grows old. This is an appropriate arrangement for employees who lack experience in investment and are not good at managing their finances. All in all, the core fund can, to a limited extent, redress some problems for which the MPF system is criticised.

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有關核心基金管理費，法例訂明在0.75%以下，相對於其他動輒收取超過1%管理費的計劃算是較合理。不過，其他國家地區一些退休金管理費有低至0.2%至0.3%，核心基金與之相比仍屬偏高。財經事務及庫務局長陳家強認為0.75%管理費上限只是一個開始，上限水平日後或再下降。另外，積金局建議參與核心基金的成員，會隨着其年齡增長而調低投資風險，這個安排對於缺乏投資經驗不善理財的打工仔，是恰當設計。總體而言，核心基金可以稍微起到修補強積金為人詬病之效。

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The MPF system is criticised as "unfair" and unjust". Though they are forced to make MPF contributions, some citizens are too averse to the system to pay their schemes any attention. In any case, the MPF system has been in place for more than 15 years and, by virtue of it, many employees have accumulated some wealth. To allow themselves greater security in retirement, they should change their mindsets, pay attention to their schemes and, in view of the plan the authorities have made, make appropriate investment arrangements so as to maximise their MPF wealth. Measures like the "MPF semi-portability", the core fund or the "MPF full-portability" to be introduced are not too complicated to understand. With professionals' help, employees should be able to make changes and choices advantageous to themselves. It is of first importance that employees stop ignoring their MPF schemes. "Wealth ignores those who ignore it." This is a common aphorism useful to employees who should reevaluate the MPF system.

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至於強積金被指「不公平、不公義」的質疑，有些市民雖然被迫供款，但是對強積金心存抗拒，不少人因而不聞不問。無論如何，強積金實施已經15年，對許多打工仔來說，因而或多或少已經累積了一筆錢，為了過更安穩的退休生活，打工仔應該改變心態，關心和重視強積金，因應當局推出的計劃，作適當投資部署，盡量使屬於自己的強積金累積增值。強積金半自由行和核心基金，或日後推出的「全自由行」，都不是太複雜的事，只要有專業人士協助，打工仔應該都可以做於己有利的轉換和抉擇。前提是打工仔切勿繼續「懶理」強積金，「你不理財，財不理你」，是打工仔重新認知強積金的通俗格言。

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明報社評2015.03.13

Presented by lecturers of Hong Kong Community College, PolyU and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Wience Lai

HKCC Lecturer

www.hkcc-polyu.edu.hk/staff_directory/social_communication/details.php?id=112&lang=eng

郭熙琳

香港理工大學專上學院講師

www.hkcc-polyu.edu.hk/staff_directory/social_communication/details.php?id=98&lang=chi

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