Europe

UK - Pension funds cannot use equities as inflation hedging assets in a deflationary environment such as the one currently being experienced, investment bankers say.

UK - Former Credit Suisse head of transition management Graham Dixon has been appointed as a director at manager evaluation firm Inalytics.

UK - Brevan Howard Asset Management has launched its first UCITS III fund, the Brevan Howard Absolute Return Bond Plus Fund, targeted at pension funds and other institutional investors.

EUROPE - The parent company of chemical giant ICI, the Dutch Azko Noble, has said the funding status of its pension plans has improved, although it still had a deficit of nearly €1bn (US1.27bn).

UK - Balanced pooled funds achieved a median return of -6.0% in January 2009, CAPS pooled pension fund performance results from BNY Mellon Asset Servicing reveal.

UK - Pension funds continued to diversify into direct hedge funds and direct private equity, but are allocating significantly less to real estate, Watson Wyatt says.

UK - The Merchant Navy Officers Pension Fund has delayed its planned insurance buyout deal for the old section of its scheme, as a result of market turbulence.

UK - The £3.7bn (US$5.4bn) Merseyside Pension Fund has awarded a £110m European ex-UK equity mandate to Swiss asset manager Unigestion.

UK - Several pension funds are considering making compensation claims or launching legal action against UK fund managers and advisers, Protiviti has claimed.

UK - Local authority pension funds have may be approached as possible sources of capital to rebuild and renovate school buildings, Partnership for Schools (PfS) has confirmed.