Europe

SPAIN - The Spanish government has paid out €429.7m to more than eight million pensioners to compensate for the unforeseen rise in inflation in 2006.

UK - New joint venture PensionsRisk is looking to buy-out firms such as Paternoster to underwrite its insurance-based approach to managing DB pensions risk as it targets schemes with liabilities upwards of £100m.

UK - The Accounting Standards Board (ASB) has published disclosure guidelines aimed at promoting greater transparency in financial reporting for defined benefit (DB) pension schemes.

UK - Railways Pension Trustee Company CEO Chris Hitchen has been named the new NAPF chairman, replacing Robin Ellison who will step down in May.

UK - The DWP yesterday announced that from April 2008 pension transfer values would be calculated according to the expected cost to the scheme providing the pension.

UK - Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP) has appointed WestLB Mellon's Craig Veysey as global bond product head.

UK - B&CE Benefit Schemes has appointed Invesco Perpetual to manage a £70m UK equity mandate. 

UK - The Society of Pension Consultants (SPC) has appointed James Hodge as its new chairman.

US - Hedge fund trading volume in European government bonds, emerging markets, and interest-rate derivatives tripled in 2006, according to a report by Greenwich Associates.

UK - The deficit in the FTSE100 pension schemes dropped by £11bn in two months - between October 2006 and December, however the companies are still taking an inefficient approach to scheme funding.