North America

UK/US - Local authority pension schemes could be losing out on £125m (US$198.9m) by failing to participate in US class action lawsuits, research by Goal Group revealed.

Following a difficult 12 months Raquel Pichardo-Allison looks at the differing strategies corporate and public funds in the US have developed to survive the credit crunch

US - Five pension funds have filed an amended complaint against Bank of America (BofA) alleging the firm mislead investors in the lead-up to the bank's acquisition of Merrill Lynch.

CANADA/US - A unit of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (OTPP) will take a stake in Simmons, the US-based mattress maker said as it outlined its bankruptcy and restructuring plans.

CANADA - The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec has committed C$39.8m (US$37.2m) to Canadian technology company GLV, as part of an ongoing programme to invest C$1.5bn in Quebec-based firms.

US/UK - The US should adopt the UK's practice of allowing shareholder advisory votes on executive compensation, a new report released today argued.

AUSTRALIA: Future Fund invests in UK property; NEW ZEALAND: NZ Superannuation up 6.31%; CANADA: CPPIB

CANADA - The head of the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) said the country's pension system needs to be reformed and suggested creating a mandatory supplemental pension plan to complement existing arrangements.

US - Manager search activity increased in the first half of the year as investors funnelled 327% more assets into new fixed income mandates than last year, according to data compiled by Mercer.

CANADA - The C$87.4bn (US$81.8bn) Ontario Teachers Pension Plan (OTPP) will acquire an additional 35.5% stake in UK-based Bristol International Airport (BIA) in a deal with Macquarie Airports.