Europe

EUROPE - The international trade body for hedge funds, along with the NAPF, this week urged the European Parliament to vote down an amendment to a controversial directive that would hinder its members investing in EU alternative funds.

UK - British Telecom has reported a £2.8bn (US$4.1bn) increase in its net pension deficit on an IAS19 basis.

SPAIN - The Spanish government is set to freeze state pensions for 2011 as part of a package of measures aimed at reducing the country's ballooning deficit and send a positive signal to markets.

UK - The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats coalition deal could have heavy implications for policies on tax relief on pension scheme contributions.

UK - Aviva will pump £365m (US$540bn) into its staff pension scheme in a bid to tackle its £2.7bn deficit.

EUROPE - The €750bn (US$970bn) European rescue package is a positive short-term fix, but does not provide the structural changes needed to make pension funds and other investors fully comfortable with European sovereign credit, asset managers said.

EUROPE - The Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee of the European Parliament (ECON) has postponed today's vote on the Alternative Investment Fund Managers directive (AIFM) to May 17, in order to give "more consideration to the opinion of the Legal...

FRANCE - The Fonds de Réserve pour les Retraites (FRR) gained 2.6% during the first quarter, according to estimated and unaudited data supplied by the fund.

UK - The Merchant Navy Officers Pension Fund has secured a further £100m (US$149.9m) of liabilities after signing a second buy-in deal with Lucida.

NORWAY - Radical changes to laws governing defined benefit plans in Norway will be needed to adapt the schemes to the new old-age state pension, a commission tasked with examining the future of pensions in the country's private sector has concluded.