Regions

GLOBAL - Société Générale Asset Management Alternative Investments (SGAM AI) has announced it is to launch funds linked to Standard & Poor's (S&P) Shariah indices.

INCLUDING: US - State Street buys Investors Financial Services Corp, UK - Pension funds in £4bn surplus, GLOBAL - Macquarie Goodman rebrands, UK - LaSalle and PRUPIM launch Asia Property fund.

EUROPE - Global Pensions can exclusively reveal that midsize pension funds are flocking to infrastructure via the use of liquid exchange traded funds (ETFS).

INCLUDING: CHINA - More officials on trial, UK - HSBC appoint Ashmore, US - Supermarket senior on gov board

EUROPE - British investment trusts are due to be repaid up to £300m and save £40m per annum after the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled they should not have to pay value added tax (VAT).

INCLUDING: SWEDEN - Aon chief departs, US - Goldman Sachs to lose investment head, US - SEC hunts out "terrorist supporters", UK - Gartmore new distribution chief, UK - Boutique big business, NETHERLANDS, AZL turns fiduciary, EUROPE - ECJ court case could...

INCLUDING: NETHERLANDS - ABN Amro saga rumbles on, UK - AXA IM launches currency fund, NETHERLANDS -ABP sorts out trades, CANADA - Actuaries call for change.

GLOBAL - Mercer Investment Consulting (Mercer IC) experienced a drop in the number of manager searches it conducted in Europe excluding the UK, as well as in the US, during 2006, but denied any loss of business.

GLOBAL - Global alternative assets managed by the largest 99 pension fund alternatives managers in the world now stand at just under US$600bn, according to Watson Wyatt Investment Consulting.

INCLUDING: UK - Minister speaks about M&A, CANADA - Mountie finance chief steps down, UK - FTSE launches new REIT index