Global

GLOBAL - Barclays Global Investors (BGI) has come under fire for its stake in a company that is believed to have brought massive destruction to the Indonesian rainforest.

GLOBAL - Merrill Lynch Investment Managers (MLIM) is predicting a boom year for the gold market, claiming that a combination of political and economic factors has created market conditions that are "the strongest seen for years".

GLOBAL - Ned Riley, State Street Global Advisors' (SSgA) chief investment strategist - global active equity, has claimed that equity markets are on the rise again, with technology stocks taking a lead role on the recovery.

GLOBAL - AXA Investment Managers believes that after the disappointment of 2001 the high-yield bond market is poised to enter a recovery stage with stimulating returns expected in 2002.

GERMANY - Corporate schemes are set to be play an increasingly important role in the future of European pension reform, according to Allianz board member Joachim Faber.

GLOBAL - Credit Suisse First Boston yesterday announced the launch of its first Hedgefund Index Participations HIP fund, which has been designed for investment by pension funds and other institutions who wish to diversify their portfolios across alternative...

GLOBAL - Barclays Global Investors (BGI), the world's largest institutional asset manager, increased operating profit 20% to £71m in a year of significantly lower stock market levels , it said. But assets under management declined by 4%.

GLOBAL - Schroders' chief executive Michael Dobson has axed nearly 70 jobs at the fund manager, in his first shake up of the firm since his arrival in October.

GLOBAL - Aon's chairman and chief executive officer Patrick Ryan has labelled 2001 as a "year of progress", with the firm's pre-tax consulting income up 22% to $133m.

GLOBAL - The global fund management industry saw virtually no growth in 2001, according to the preliminary results of a Cerulli Associates study.