Regions

GLOBAL - ING Group, the Dutch international financial services company, bucked the recent trend of downturns in IH profits by posting a positive 16% result.

GLOBAL - The American Masters Market Neutral Fund (AMMNF) - the latest fund in Tremont's American Masters fund series - has accumulated US$60m under management since its launch.

GLOBAL - ING Furman Selz Asset Management (IFSAM) - a unit of Dutch institutional investment house ING Aeltus Group - has launched two new offshore hedge funds for institutional and private clients in Europe, Latin America and Asia.

SOUTH AFRICA - Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) president, Willie Madisha, will today lead a delegation addressing the finance portfolio committee in parliament on legislation dealing with pension surplus.

SOUTH AFRICA - Approximately R62bn ($7.4bn) worth of retirement fund assets may have been adversely impacted by high levels of consolidation in the asset management industry over the past two years, according to multi-managers Investment Solutions.

SOUTH AFRICA - Retirement funds of government institutions such as Telkom, Eskom and Transnet should be encouraged to invest in venture capital to support job-creation, according to Ron den Besten, general manager of Gensec Bank's private equity division....

GLOBAL - The Private Equity Group of WestAM, - the global institutional investment arm of Germany's Westdeutsche Landesbank (WestLB) - has raised over $180m in the first closing round of its COREplus Private Equity Partners fund (CORE).

GLOBAL - Aon International Risk Management Group has appointed Barclays Global Investors as the asset manager for a new cash fund.

GLOBAL - A Merrill Lynch survey says fund managers are optimistic about the global economy, but want to see European monetary policy eased.

SOUTH AFRICA - The Johannesburg Stock Exchange's small cap sector could run strongly over the next year as low valuations and earnings increases make their mark on share prices, according to Old Mutual Asset Management (OMAM).