DENMARK – PensionDanmark has said it is planning to invest DKK2bn (€268m) a year in Danish property over the next five years.

Managing director Torben Møger Pedersen said: “The aim is that we will invest more than DKK10bn over the next five years in both new and existing commercial and residential property.”

He said this was first and foremost about securing a good return for the fund’s members, but added that it created jobs for members, too.

He was speaking at the topping-out ceremony at one of its real estate investments – the Horisonten II residential building in Ørestad in Copenhagen.

In other news, AP Pension said it was maintaining its account dividend at 3.25% before tax, and 2.75% after tax.

Managing director Søren Dal Thomsen said: “Despite the fact the global economy has still not corrected itself, it looks as if 2012 was a good year for AP Pension customers.”

The fund made a 2012 return of around 8% for the year for traditional with-profits pensions and between 8% and 16% for unit-link pensions.

All of AP Pension’s original interest-rate groups would receive the 3.25% dividend for 2013, but those interest groups coming over from now-merged FSP Pension would receive 2.5-2.95% account dividends, as these pensions had lower levels of reserves, the company said.

Dal Thomsen said the account dividend level gave a good return on customers’ savings, while at the same time respecting the agreement the pensions sector made in 2012 with the Ministry for Business and Growth.

In June, the Danish government agreed a package of measures to help the pensions industry cope with low bond yields, but included the condition that they capped account dividends at 2%.

Meanwhile, pension fund LD posted a return of 9.7% for 2012 for its key LD Discretionary Investments (LD Vælger) pension, after Danish shares performed strongly.

LD said the Danish equities pool ended the year with a 25.6% return, allowing it to overtake the previous year’s loss.