IRELAND - The overall returns for the National Pensions Reserve Fund were up 7.5% during the third quarter of 2009 due to gains realised in its equity holdings.

The total deficit of FTSE350 pension schemes dramatically worsened to an estimated £102bn at the end of June, latest Pension Capital Strategies research reveals.

Giovanni Legorano talks to Dairy Crest finance director Alastair Murray about how the firm tackled the risk its scheme was posing to company finances

UK - The £7bn ($11bn) West Midlands Pension Fund has invested £40m in a global long-short equity fund of hedge funds run by Goodhart Partners.

The £7bn West Midlands Pension Fund has invested £40m in a global long-short equity fund of hedge funds run by Goodhart Partners.

US - Two more people pled guilty in the ongoing investigation relating to a pay-to-play scheme at the New York State Common Retirement Fund (CRF), New York state attorney general Andrew Cuomo announced yesterday.

GLOBAL - Sponsor defined contribution (DC) retirement plans are widely adopting automatic enrollment together with other automatic features designed to boost employee participation and limit the number of decisions employees need to make, a survey by...

UK - Conservative Party plans to accelerate the increase in the state retirement age have been backed by senior industry figures.

ITALY - At least two Italian pension funds have dropped Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS) as custodian after Intesa San Paolo's (ISP) acquisition of the firm's custodian business led to conflicts of interests in their manager line-ups.

Pirelli UK is set to close its defined benefit scheme to future accrual from January 1 next year due to a "dramatic" deterioration in the fund's finances.