SWEDEN – AP1 is set to review the SEK5.1bn (€541m) US enhanced corporate bond brief it has with BlackRock.

“A review of the fund’s external mandates for fixed-income investments is also planned for 2006, which may lead to a new procurement,” Forsta AP-fonden said in its 2005 annual report.

The brief is AP1’s only fixed income mandate under external management and dates back to 1999. AP1 said: “The results for 2005 were satisfactory, with an active return of 0.3 percentage points before operating expenses.”

A BlackRock spokeswoman said: "We never comment on our clients."

AP1 also said that it would fund emerging markets managers in the first half of 2006, following a procurement in spring last year.

And it also expected to fund new private equity briefs – after a lengthy search.

“The search for three private equity mandates that was started at the end of 2004 and continued in the past year with an in-depth evaluation of possible candidates has taken longer than anticipated due to ownership and organizational changes by several candidates,” the scheme said.

“Funding is expected to take place in the spring of 2006.

Last month the buffer fund disclosed that it 17.5% on its investments in 2005, 1.5% above benchmark, taking its net assets to SEK187.3bn (€20bn).