Asia

SOUTH KOREA/EUROPE - The National Pension Service of Korea has hired Rockspring Property Investment Managers to invest $400m in commercial property across Europe.

Morgan Stanley Investment Management has launched a Japanese equity fund targeted at institutional investors.

SOUTH KOREA - National Pension Service, South Korea's biggest investor, said its days as a passive investor are coming to an end and that it will begin raising its voice to improve corporate governance and the value of its shareholdings.

ASIA/UK - City Financial has launched an Asia fund of hedge funds aimed at pension funds and other institutional investors.

Global Pensions, in collaboration with Bursa Malaysia, gathered industry experts to discuss how the country's evolving economy is paving a smoother road for foreign investors

Investors are betting on Japanese corporates. In a web debate sponsored by Nomura Asset Management, Global Pensions editor Raquel Pichardo-Allison speaks to Nomura investment specialist Peter Jenkins, Mercer principal Piers Bertlin and Hewitt Associates...

JAPAN - Japan's public pension fund, the world's largest, will increase asset sales by more than five times to about ¥4trn ($48bn) this fiscal year as payouts rise with the nation's population ageing.

JAPAN - Japanese pension funds are starting to invest in toll roads, ports and pipelines for the first time, seeking higher returns to meet the retirement needs of the world's fastest-aging population.

JAPAN - Japan's $1.4trn Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) returned -2.94% in the quarter ended June 30, equating to a loss of $42bn in assets.

ASIA - Nikko Asset Management has hired the former Morgan Stanley Investment Management chief executive for Asia to help the Japanese firm continue to expand throughout the region.