Regions

EUROPE - Barclays Global Investors remains the world's biggest pension fund manager by assets, according to Mercer Investment Consulting latest European Pension Fund Managers' Guide.

EUROPE - Ratings agency Standard & Poor's is urging European corporate pension funds to improve their disclosure in a bid to evaluate the potential impact of funding gaps on credit ratings.

UK - Private equity specialist Coller Capital has closed its International Partners IV fund at US$2.5bn (£1.6bn) - well above its initial US$1bn target for the fund.

GLOBAL - A new survey shows that pension funds worldwide are shunning domestic stocks.

GLOBAL - Property investment managers Jones Lang LaSalle has seen net investment income decline by US$1.8m (£1.15m) over the last quarter.

EUROPE - An influx of central European countries into the EU will depress the region's strong emerging market performance, fund managers fear.

GLOBAL - Equity returns in the MSCI World Index were -11.1% last month taking their year-to-date performance to -26.4%.

UK/EUROPE - Goldman Sachs Asset Management is launching a fund which will invest in US mortgage backed and asset backed securities.

UK/EUROPE - Access to the Eurobond market would be the biggest investment opportunity open to UK pension funds following entry into the Euro.

UK/EUROPE - Credit Suisse Asset Management has launched an exchange traded fund based on the MSCI Euro Index.