Regions

EUROPE - Pension funds are continuing to diversify into riskier assets, with interest in private markets likely to increase in the short to mid-term, bfinance said.

GERMANY/ EUROPE - The European Commission has referred Germany to the European Court of Justice for imposing tax rules that result in higher taxes on dividends paid to foreign pension funds holding stakes in German companies.

GLOBAL - Embattled BP chief executive Tony Hayward has reassured pension schemes the firm's obligations will be met despite spiralling costs following the Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster.

GLOBAL/UK - Emerging market debt fundamentals are attractive for pension funds seeking portfolio growth and diversification, J.P. Morgan Asset Management said.

EUROPE/ITALY - The European Commission has issued a new request for Italy to move swiftly to equalise the retirement age for men and women.

EUROPE - The European Commission has launched a public consultation on a Green Paper looking at reforming corporate governance in financial institutions.

GLOBAL - The financial crisis remains a threat to global stability despite the intervention by Euro policymakers, Towers Watson said.

EUROPE - Investments into long term UCITS excluding money market funds surged in the first quarter of 2010 to €87bn (US$106.1bn) in net inflows, the first time such levels had been reached since Q1 2006, according to new figures from the European Fund...

ASIA - Asian funds at Newton Investment Management are among the beneficiaries of actions being taken by three of Asia's largest sovereign wealth funds.

GLOBAL - Hedge fund practitioners have criticised research from the European School of Management & Technology that has voiced "serious concerns" about the risks their sector poses its investors.