News

THE falling value of sterling represents an opportunity for foreign sponsors of defined benefit schemes to take action on deficits, Punter Southall says.

The Financial Services Authority has defended its decision to lift the ban on the short selling of financial stocks - dismissing concerns this had caused dramatic falls in financial stocks' prices over the last week.

The £2.2bn Avon Pension Fund has awarded a £90m property mandate to Schroders as part of a wider allocation to UK and European property.

More than a quarter of closed final salary schemes will be replaced by defined contribution plans as a direct result of the economic crisis, research shows.

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Executive remuneration is the key boardroom issue facing FTSE250 companies and will impact their ability to weather the economic downturn, Hewitt New Bridge Street says.

Latest guidance to lawyers and insolvency practitioners involved in "pre-packaged sales" of businesses will make the process more transparent for trustees, a lawyer says.

EUROPE - Institutional investors dropped hedge funds and shifted allocations to fixed income following the Madoff scandal and disappointing returns during the fourth quarter of 2008, a survey by Mandatewire has revealed.

AUSTRALIA - The average superannuation savings fund fell by over a fifth over the course of 2008, Chant West said.

GLOBAL - Pension sponsors should recognise an extra 10-15% of longevity-related liabilities, while facing rapidly declining asset values, according to a report by Hewitt Associates.