As federal politicians debate over paid parental leave, the plight of women's superannuation savings has been highlighted once again this week with the release of a report, Superannuation Savings Gap for Women, authored by superannuation consultants and actuaries Rice Warner.

Are you in danger of exceeding at least one of the annual caps on super contributions?

When it comes to financial advice it is not all about money. There is the issue of accessibility – why more Australians don’t seek the services of a qualified financial adviser.

Successive ABS Retirement and Retirement Intentions reports show that more than a third of retirees who take superannuation lump sums use at least some of the money to pay off homes, upgrade homes or undertake home renovations.

The reality that many super fund members obtain at least some death and permanent disability insurance through their funds doesn’t mean, of course, that their level of cover is adequate.

Australian lending finance figures for January – covering housing, personal, commercial and leasing finance – are released today. These provide another key measure of the economy.

The Reserve Bank releases at 11.30am today the minutes of its monetary policy meeting on March 2, revealing more of the bank’s latest views on interest rates and inflation.

The figures for US housing starts and permits during February are released today. These are a key indicator of an economic struggling to get back on track.

Given Australia’s shortage of housing, today’s release of preliminary national figures for housing commencements over the December quarter will be closely studied.

The Melbourne Institute Monthly Bulletin of Economic Trends is released at 11am today. This report provides a forecast for our economy over the next four quarters while giving a succinct and timely update of its present state. It covers such areas as GDP growth, consumption, unemployment, the inflationary outlook, 90-day bill rate, and exchange rate.