Regions

The traditional asset classes of equities, bonds and cash are battling against an unusual cocktail of belligerently high inflation and slowing economic momentum. Julian Lyne explores the alternative investment solutions available to pension funds

CEE - Aegon plans to target small pension funds for acquisition in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) in its bid to win a 10% market share of the region's mandatory schemes by 2010.

SPAIN - FTSE and Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME) have launched a responsible investment index for companies displaying good corporate responsibility.

GLOBAL - Longevity and caring for elder relations and children is squeezing the baby boomer generation and putting retirement security at risk, the Hartford Financial Services Group has warned.

AFRICA - Standard & Poor's has expanded its Africa Index Series with the addition of the S&P Pan Africa, S&P Africa Frontier and S&P Africa 40 indices.

EUROPE - The Committee of European Insurance and Occupational Pension Supervisors (CEIORPS) has released a report on the differences between solvency requirements and barriers to creating a truly harmonised European pension system.

INCLUDING: US - State Street names chief risk officer; UK/US - AIMA and MFA enter alliance; UK - NAPF releases conference video footage; US - Colorado's FFPA retains BNY Mellon

EUROPE - Almost half of defined contribution pension schemes do not regularly review the range or number of investment choices they offer members, according to a survey from Mercer.

GLOBAL - Over three quarters of pension funds take asset managers' corporate culture into consideration when awarding mandates, according to the latest Global Pensions 100 Panel survey.

NORWAY - The Government Pension Fund - Global is to make real estate a separate asset class and expand its benchmark portfolio to include more emerging markets, finance minister Kristin Halvorsen has revealed.