Europe

EUROPE - Kempen Capital Management and SNS Asset Management have launched an index to track the socially responsible investment performance of smaller companies in Europe.

UK - Scheme funding at Britain's top firms has improved by more than 20% in the past six months, research from Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein shows.

UK - The £2bn South Tyneside Metropolitan District Council Tyne & Wear Pension Fund has gone out to tender for an investment consultant.

UK - Buck Consultants has come bottom of the Global Pensions league table of UK investment consultants' manager research capabilities.

UK - Ernst & Young has set up two defined contribution schemes for staff following the decision to freeze its final salary scheme.

UK - Unilever is set to unveil a web-based video conferencing service to the 12,800 members of its final salary scheme.

UK - Winterthur Life reported an increase of 169% in the sales of defined contribution products during the first half of 2003.

UK - Former non-executive directors of Equitable Life are fighting to have the troubled mutual's lawsuit against them thrown out of court.

UK - Retirees are getting richer faster despite reports of a massive UK retirement gap, a report from Datamonitor shows.

UK - Barclays Bank's hybrid pension scheme for new staff members is on schedule to start from October 1.