Latest from IPE Magazine – Page 132
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Opinion PiecesPensions in a hostile climate
Outside the realm of US public pension plans, where generous return assumptions and inflated discount rates are common, the medium and long-term outlook for asset classes is of serious importance to most pension funds.
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Country ReportFrance: PACTE changes the landscape
The new PACTE law will transform pension saving in France
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Special ReportManagement & outsourcing: The rush is on
Competition is intensifying among providers of data analysis and benchmarking solutions
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FeaturesBriefing: Draghi’s parting gift on ECB stance
If anyone in Europe was left in any doubt on 11 September about the dovishness of the European Central Bank (ECB) under Mario Draghi’s leadership, by close of business on the next day their doubts were surely dispelled. On that day the outgoing president of the ECB unleashed a bout of monetary easing, in an attempt to boost euro-zone inflation from 1% to its target of “below, but close to, 2% over the medium term”.
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Asset Class ReportsSmall & mid-cap equities: Public or private markets?
Public markets are shrinking while private markets are attracting huge amounts of capital. But it is still not clear which is the better bet
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Opinion PiecesStoring up future pain
Anyone who back in 2008 had accurately predicted what monetary policy would look like today would certainly have been regarded as unhinged.
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Country ReportSystem reform: A hot political plot
Pension reforms have reached a second stage as President Macron seeks to push through radical changes
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FeaturesBriefing: US makes rapid turnaround
Father Christmas delivered a sack of coal to equity markets last Christmas Eve, with the S&P 500 index losing 1.8%, following a three-day slide. Forecasters had previously been expecting two or three rate hikes in December, as Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell steered that discussion. He had mistakenly assumed that the economy had not yet reached a normal, neutral level but it already had, forcing him to backtrack.
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Asset Class ReportsThe small-cap conundrum
Academic studies have cast doubt on the existence of a premium for investing in small-cap stocks
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Opinion PiecesDo not let costs become an obsession
Our report this month on management and outsourcing discusses how pension funds must increasingly rely on external organisations to analyse their portfolios, particularly from a cost perspective.
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Country ReportPension regimes: The second pillar evolves
The second-pillar pension regime for private sector employees, AGIRC-ARRCO, is entering a new phase of its development
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FeaturesBriefing: Deep tensions threaten EU vision
This is not a commentary on the UK within or without Europe. Brexit has been a compelling distraction but it is one macroeconomic strand in a complex world. The overwhelming coverage has also moved attention away from key internal tensions within the European project.
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Asset Class ReportsESG awareness grows
Smaller companies are realising they must keep up with ESG and impact-investing standards to remain successful
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Opinion PiecesTime to talk pensions
At a press briefing last month, Bill Galvin, chief executive of the UK’s £68bn (€77bn) Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), emphasised the importance of improving its communication policy.
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FeaturesBriefing: Coping with lower for much longer
German institutional investors have shifted their asset allocation due to low bond yields
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FeaturesGerman Spezialfonds show modest asset growth
Germany’s Spezialfonds market showed modest positive growth in 2018 in the face of challenging market conditions, with total assets approaching €1.5trn.
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Features
The accounting backstop
What if the Irish government pumped €64bn into its banking system to repay loans to the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Irish Central bank illegally?
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Opinion PiecesLong-term matters: How capitalists can save the Amazon from capitalism
When foundations and wealthy individuals launched their Rapid Response-Able Fund (RRAF) in spring 2020, commentators sneered at the “save the world” motivation while others said it would distract attention from the political changes that were needed.
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FeaturesGovernment Pension Investment Fund: Widening the reach
The president of Japan’s €1.3trn Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) reflects on the challenges of century-long stewardship
