Europe

UK - More than 800 UK factory workers are set to lose up to 97% of their pension savings after their firm's US parent "washed its hands" of them.

UK - Standard & Poor's has created a dedicated team to provide fund managers and institutional investors with customised indices.

UK - Over 90% of staff do not have sufficient access to information about their employee benefit packages, a new survey shows.

UK - Companies winding up their schemes will only have to pay a fraction of the full buyout costs, Mercer claims.

UK - Pension funds are being encouraged to invest in China and India on the back of evidence they will be catapulted to the forefront of the world economic order in coming years.

EUROPE - Watson Wyatt has promoted 14 of its European associates to partner level.

UK - Closing the Network Rail final salary scheme will trigger a raft of further scheme closures within the industry-wide Railways Pension Fund, unions fear.

UK - Retail and business services group GUS has made a £100m one-off payment into its two UK defined benefit pension schemes to cut their "modest" deficits.

EUROPE - JPMorgan Fleming Asset Management has launched a major expansion into the real estate business in Europe, following an increased demand for real estate products from its institutional clients.

UK - Marketing communications agency Golley Slater has unveiled a new employee benefits scheme for its 280 staff.