United Kingdom

UK - Employers will be forced to close final salary schemes if new actuarial projections on mortality rates are correct, industry experts claim.

UK - Institutional confidence in property investment has soared over the past year, a survey by Baring, Houston & Saunders shows.

UK - Goldman Sachs Asset Management has appointed Philip Moffitt as co-head of global fixed income and currency.

UK/MYANMAR - Tobacco giant BAT is being quizzed about its operations in Myanmar (Burma) by leading socially responsible investor Insight Investment - the asset management arm of HBOS.

UK - Senior industry figures have attacked the government for backtracking on its plans for "radical" pensions reform.

UK - Sandler's proposals for creating a suite of simple savings products depends on the government getting the economics right, the ABI claims.

UK - Final salary schemes are still the most popular form of pension provision at Britain's largest firms, a survey by IPN's sister publication Professional Pensions reveals.

UK - The £1.5bn Staffordshire County Council Pension Fund is looking to appoint a fund manager to run a tactical asset allocation mandate valued at £815m.

UK - The £637m Worcestershire County Council's pension fund has revealed the results of a complete overhaul of its fund manager roster.

UK - The value of balanced funds fell dramatically in the three months to the end of October, latest figures from HSBC Actuaries and Consultants show.