Europe

UK - The latest round of valuations at the Local Government Pension Scheme have sparked fears that council employers will pay more for their workers' pensions.

UK - An election is to take place for the NAPF's investment council after nine people were nominated for the five available positions.

UK - West Midlands Pension Scheme is set to be the first English local authority to offer its employees an additional pension through the TUC stakeholder scheme.

UK - Government moves to encourage more shareholder activism by pension funds could put them in breach of Takeover Panel rules, proxy voting agency Manifest warns.

UK - Invesco Asset Management yesterday announced the appointment of Daniel Roberts to further strengthen its UK institutional equities team based in London. He will be reporting to Robert Churchlow, head of UK institutional equities.

UK - Investec Asset Management, the liquidity managers with 115 local authority clients, today welcomed the proposal by the government allowing local authorities to invest in money market funds, believing this to be long overdue.

UK - Inadequate national insurance rebates are not the only factor that will encourage companies to move their employees back into the state earnings-related pensions scheme (SERPS), according to Watson Wyatt. It is the political risk of further changes...

EUROPE - ABN Amro and UBS did nothing to buck the recent trend in slumping full year profits.

FRANCE - ABF Capital Management has launched a new environmental fund.

UK - Thousands of people in money purchase pension schemes are in for a shock next year when new actuarial rules reduce their expected retirement pots by more than half.