Europe

UK - Pickering's proposals will stem the tide of defined benefit closures, both the NAPF and PMI believe.

UK - Pinsent Curtis Biddle has appointed Stephen Scholefield an associate and Pippa Read an assistant solicitor in its new Manchester office.

UK - A new study by HSBC Actuaries and Consultants (HSBC) shows that UK balanced pension fund managers saw a -9.1% slump in average returns during Q2 this year, troubled by stock markets dives.

FRANCE - French banking group BNP Paribas has issued a Q2 profits warning, less than two weeks before it presents its full results. The group cited "exceptional turbulences currently affecting financial markets" as the reason behind the move. Net income...

UK - The London Stock Exchange pension scheme is quitting equities, a move which consultants fear could trigger an exodus from the asset class.

UK - Radical pensions simplification will have to wait until the Inland Revenue completes its review on tax simplification, Alan Pickering admits.

UK - Majedie Asset Management a new fund manager specialising in UK equities for pension funds has been created by former Merrill Lynch Investment Management staff.

UK - Global ratings agency Standard & Poor's is planning to publish credit ratings for UK pension schemes.

UK/EUROPE - Alan Pickering's proposal to make scheme membership a condition of employment could breach human rights law, leading pensions lawyers warn.

EUROPE - Gartmore has expanded its Luxembourg-based SICAV fund range with the addition of two bond sub-funds - the Gartmore SICAV European Bond Fund and the Gartmore SICAV European Corporate Bond Fund.