Funding – Page 162
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News
Equity losses reduce AP2 by €5.2bn
[16:15 CET 06-02] SWEDEN – Andra AP-fonden (AP2), the Second Swedish National Pension Fund has reported a loss of -24%, or SEK55.1bn (€5.2bn), on its net assets in 2008.
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Pension funds seek fresh delay to indexation label
[16:10 CET 06-02] NETHERLANDS - VB and OPF, the main lobbying organisations for the Dutch pension funds, have called for a further delay to the introduction of the indexation label, as officials say the financial situation is still too unclear to be able to deliver sound forecasts.
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Interest rate hedge limits TNO’s loss
[15:50 CET 06-02] NETHERLANDS - The TNO pension fund’s investments yielded a negative return of almost 5% in 2008, despite adopting a high interest rate hedge.
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ATP hedging avoids draw on reserves
[17:15 CET 05-02] DENMARK – ATP Group, Denmark’s largest pension fund provider, suffered a loss of DKK 25.7bn (€3.4bn) in 2008, though the firm's hedging strategy prevented a need to draw on reserves in what it was described as a "challenging year".
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Gov't claims auto-enrolment will benefit 95%
[17:05 CET 05-02] UK – Auto-enrolment will benefit more than 95% of people in relation to retirement saving despite means-testing, and the “large majority” expected to get double what they contribute, the government has claimed.
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News
Irish managed funds drop 1.9% in January
[16:55 CET 05-02] IRELAND – Irish group pension managed funds fell an average of 1.9% in January continuing the downward trend that led to a 34.8% loss in 2008, according to figures from Rubicon Investment Consulting.
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Bonds save severance funds falls
[16:50 CET 05-02] AUSTRIA – Mandatory severance pay funds posted a negative return of -1.8% for 2008, which could have been worse had it not been for their large bond exposure.
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News
Akzo Nobel scheme loses a fifth
[16:40 CET 05-02] NETHERLANDS - The €3.6bn Dutch pension fund of paints giant Akzo Nobel returned –20.6% on its investments in 2008, as its equity allocation plummeted in value by 42%.
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News
Public sector 'to cost taxpayers £335bn'
[16:55 CET 04-02] UK – The Institute of Directors (IoD) has suggested public sector workers should be switched to defined contribution (DC) pension arrangements as public sector pensions as funding shortfalls could cost taxpayers £335bn (€371bn) in employer controbutions over the next 50 years.
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State pension hit worst – German poll
[16:00 CET 04-02] GERMANY – Almost half of people interviewed in a recent poll think the current financial crisis will weaken the state pension system but only 12% fear a negative influence on occupational pensions.
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Pensions Board updates DB funding standard rules
[15:45 CET 04-02] IRELAND – The Irish Pensions Board has issued revised guidelines for pension schemes wanting to extend recovery periods for scheme funding past 10 years.
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Irish gov't unveils public pension levy
[15:30 CET 04-02] IRELAND – The Irish government has unveiled plans to cut public spending by €2.1bn, and almost €1.4bn of this will be achieved by requiring public sector workers to pay a new pension 'levy' averaging 7.5% towards their pensions.
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News
Ombudsman may file further Eq Life report
[15:15 CET 04-02] UK – Ann Abrahams, the Parliamentary Ombudsman, is considering whether to submit a follow-up report on Equitable Life detailing why she finds the government response to her report "unsatisfactory", a committee of MPs has been told.
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News
Belgian funds return -20.5% in 2008
[16:40 CET 03-02] BELGIUM – Belgian pension funds suffered a negative return of 20.5% in 2008, the Belgian Association of Pension Institutions (BVPI) has revealed.
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News
Global pension assets drop 18% in 2008
[16:30 CET 03-02] GLOBAL – Economic conditions have resulted in the largest annual decline in global pension fund assets “for many years”, as the total value of pension pots fell 18% in 2008 to $25trn (€19.6trn), according to research from International Financial Services London (IFSL).
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News
PME campaigns for bespoke recovery approach
[16:25 CET 03-02] NETHERLANDS – Hans van der Windt, director of PME, the €18.7bn pension fund for the metal and electronics sectors, wants the pension regulator to adopt a tailor-made approach that enables pension funds to recover at their individual pace.
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News
Further delay indexation label - PGB fund
[16:15 CET 03-02] NETHERLANDS - Pensioenfonds Grafische Bedrijven (PGB), the €9bn Dutch pension fund for the printing and publishing industry, has hit out against the planned introduction of an indexation label, arguing it promotes short-termism and is not informative enough.
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News
BT takes sipp for new DC scheme
[16:00 CET 03-02] UK – BT, the telecoms giant, has appointed Standard Life to provide a new corporate self-invested personal pension (CSIPP) to replace its existing defined contribution (DC) schemes.
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News
Greencore deficit hits €68m
[16:40 CET 02-02] IRELAND – Greencore, the Irish convenience food manufacturer, has reported the deficit in its defined benefit (DB) pension schemes more than doubled to €68m in 2008.
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News
Finland to set guaranteed pension level from 2011
[16:30 CET 02-02] FINLAND – The Finnish government has announced a guaranteed minimum pension for pensioners will be introduced in 2011.
