All IPE articles in April 2009 (Online) – Page 3
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NewsPNO Media considers cuts as a recovery option
[13:00 CEST 24-04] NETHERLANDS - PNO, the €2.5bn pension fund for the media, has not ruled out the prospect of cutting pension benefits and claims, if additional recovery measures turn out to be insufficient to improve its funding level.
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NewsMEP reforms approved as EP votes against extra contributions
[16:30 CEST 23-04] EUROPE – Reforms to the voluntary pension fund for members of the European Parliament (MEPs) should allow the scheme to continue to pay benefits "for as long as necessary", and without the need for taxpayers to cover the actuarial deficit of €120m.
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NewsEquity bounce limited PfZW and PMT falls
[16:15 CEST 23-04] NETHERLANDS – PfZW and PMT, the giant industry-wide pension funds for healthcare and metal industry workers, suffered losses of over 4% in the first quarter of this year, despite a slight recovery in equity markets last month.
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NewsAP1 revises ownership policy over gov't guidelines
[15:45 CEST 23-04] SWEDEN - Första AP-fonden (AP1) is planning to abstain from voting on remuneration issues for senior executives of companies it is invested in, until a decision on a revised ownership policy has been made following new government guidelines.
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NewsPension funds turn to specialists and alternatives
[14:30 CEST 23-04] EUROPE – Pension funds are increasingly moving into alternatives but the next growth area could be in the expansion of specialist fixed income mandates and single strategy hedge funds, according to Mercer’s review of pension fund asset allocation.
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NewsIlmarinen sees positive results in Q1
[14:00 CEST 23-04] FINLAND – Ilmarinen Mutual Insurance Company has reported a positive first quarter return of 0.2%, as fixed income investments performed well.
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NewsSHPS extends benefit options as deficit passes £600m
[13:00 CEST 23-04] UK – The Social Housing Pension Scheme (SHPS) is to offer a defined contribution (DC) option to employers for the first time after the latest valuation revealed its deficit had increased to £633m (€715m) at the end of September 2008, from £209m the previous year.
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NewsFuture provision threatened by early pension access - OECD
[12:00 CEST 23-04] GLOBAL – The OECD has warned future pension provision could be undermined by giving early access to pension funds to aid people in “severe economic difficulties” alongside access to national pension reserves.
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NewsThe winter of Swiss discontent?
[11:00 CEST 23-04] SWITZERLAND – A referendum against a cut in the conversion rate of the Swiss mandatory second pillar pension regime will most likely happen before Christmas.
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NewsEC to focus on member protection at insolvency
[17:00 CEST 22-04] EUROPE – The European Commission (EC) is seeking a contractor to help it further investigate measures for protecting supplementary pension benefits in the event of employer insolvency.
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NewsLAPFF tackles KBC over remuneration
BELGIUM – [16:50 CEST 22-04] UK/BELGIUM – The Local Authority Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF) has called on members to take action at the annual general meeting (AGM) of banking and life insurer KBC over remuneration concerns.
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NewsGermans prepare for lower pension
[16:45 CEST 22-04] GERMANY – The number of Germans who think they will have to cut expenses at retirement is on the rise, while fewer people are willing to save privately for their pension, research has suggested.
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NewsOECD flags need for better pensions governance
[16:35 CEST 22-04] GLOBAL – Pension fund governance and risk management needs to be improved to avoid exposure to risky assets and investments that are not fully understood, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has warned.
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NewsHoogovens' recovery enacted despite hedge
[16:30 CEST 22-04] NETHERLANDS - Falling interest rates as well as an negative returns on equities caused the cover ratio of Stichting Pensioenfonds Hoogovens to fall from 135.8% in 2007 to 105.5% a year later, even though the scheme had applied a sizeable interest rate hedge.
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NewsRailways scheme's buffers hit by losses
[16:10 CEST 22-04] NETHERLANDS - SPF, the large pension fund for the railways sector, lost 19.2% on investments last year, while its assets dropped from €12bn to €9.5bn and the cover fell to 121%.
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NewsWednesday people roundup
[15:30 CEST 22-04] GLOBAL – People roundup: Credit Suisse Asset Management, Legal & General IM, Hermes BPK Partners, Watson Wyatt, LaSalle IM
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NewsUK Budget cuts higher rate tax relief (updated)
[14:25 CEST 22-04] UK – Alistair Darling, chancellor of the Exchequer, has confirmed tax relief on pension contributions for high earners will be reduced from 40% to 20% from April 2011.
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NewsBPF Bouw is confident of recovery
[14:00 CEST 22-04] NETHERLANDS - BPF Bouw, the €24.2bn scheme for the building industry, expects to eliminate its funding shortfall within three years by raising contributions and halting indexation.
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NewsReed Elsevier boosts its pension fund coffers
[16:50 CEST 21-04] NETHERLANDS – Publishing house Reed Elsevier will pay €54m into its pension fund over the coming five years, to support measures taken to restore the funding shortfall of the scheme.
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NewsSki and Meland appoint pension providers
[16:45 CEST 21-04] NORWAY – Ski and Meland kommunes have appointed pension providers for their local authority pension funds following a re-tendering exercise.
