NETHERLANDS - The €2.73bn industry-wide PNO media pension fund lost fifty basis points on its investments in the last quarter of 2007, pushing the cover ratio down to just over 123%.

Nonetheless, the fund ended the full year with a positive return of 5.5%, PNO said in its fourth quarter results.

It added, however: "The market value of the pension liabilities grew by 4.4% as a result of the full indexation over 2007 and the recovering of the indexation backlog in 2003 (fully) and 2004 (mostly)."

With a negative return of 4.1%, PNO's equity portfolio dragged down the overall returns, which peaked at 8.5% for commodities and 5.2% for private equity.

PNO, which now has 355 member organisations, invests 38% of its assets in equity, 40% in fixed income, 14% in real estate, 6% in private equity, and 2% in infrastructure and commodities.

The cover ratio of the fund dropped in the fourth quarter from 128.6% to 123.1%.

The fund also said the administration costs of the fund have been higher in 2007 then was first expected, though PNO thinks it has compensated for this by taking cost-cutting measures in the second half of the year.

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