SWEDEN - The Swedish Pensions Agency, Pensionsmyndigheten, has launched its fund selection guide.

The initial launch includes four tools aimed at helping people make an informed choice among the almost 800 funds within the country's national defined contribution pension system.

The four tools will allow savers to preview the outcome of their investment decisions depending on the equity and bond allocation selected, as well as see the effects of fees and time invested on the performance.
 
According to the project manager for launching the guide, Yassin Elgadmioui, the most important element in fund selection is the selection between equities and bonds.

The tools are there to show that, even if the risk level in the premium pension affects the entire retirement income to a certain degree, that degree is not as great as one might think, which leaves room for increasing risk, he added.

In November, these tools will be complemented with additional interactive training tools that will help savers change funds.

In other news, a report commissioned by the country's Left Party (Vänsterpartiet) into the investment activities of the AP funds, the country's buffer funds, shows that the funds have invested in 'blacklisted' companies.

These investments include 15 companies that are blacklisted by, among others, AP7 (the government choice in the premium pension system) and Norway's Government Pensions Fund Global, both of which generally base their decisions on breaches of internationally ratified conventions.

In addition, the funds also invest in another 15 companies that have been blacklisted by Danwatch, a Danish corporate watchdog.

A total of SEK11bn (€1.2bn) has been invested in the 30 companies.

The Left Party plans to file a motion to Riksdagen, the Swedish parliament, requesting an independent review of the companies the AP funds invest in to verify that the companies adhere to the ethical guidelines.

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