Pensions Insight - Pensions Insight Home - News analysis and digests for pensions professionals

Breaking News:

Fury over teachers' pension changes8 September, 2010

The Press Association: Teachers could lose a "staggering" £74,000 each because of the Government's controversial decision to switch the method of calculating the rate of inflation on which pensions are based, a...

Philips sells $451M NXP stake to own pension fund8 September, 2010

Bloomberg Businessweek: Royal Philips Electronics NV said Tuesday it will sell its remaining stake in NXP Semiconductors NV to Philips' own British pension fund for euro350 million ($451 million).

Protests In France Over Pensions Age Change8 September, 2010

Sky News: Up to 2.5 million French workers have taken to the streets in protest over proposed new pension reforms.

BBC management to offer concessions over pensions row8 September, 2010

The Guardian: Mark Thompson is expected to contact staff in the next couple of days, though details of the new package remain under wraps

Royal Mail's Pension Plan Narrows Deficit With Derivatives8 September, 2010

The Wall Street Journal: A sophisticated derivatives strategy helped the £26 billion ($40 billion) pension fund for the U.K.'s Royal Mail Group earn 29% on its money last year, reducing the fund's deficit and potentially...

Pensioners raid emergency savings to make ends meet8 September, 2010

IFA Online: Around two-thirds of over-55s are concerned the would not be able to raise the necessary cash if faced with an unexpected payout of £500 or more, according to the Aviva Real Retirement Report.

Traditional retirement 'impossible'8 September, 2010

The Press Association: Nearly three-quarters of Britons think a traditional retirement will no longer be possible in the future, a survey has indicated.

More breaking news

Analysis

Beyond rational

3 September, 2010

The Blair/Brown pensions argument shows why reform can never be perfect

100 days of rectitude

September 2010

The coalition has had a significant economic impact in its first quarter year in office – the full extent will become apparent over the coming months

Comment

Right to reply

September 2010

Behind closed doors in Westminster there is a revolution building.

Local largesse

September 2010

In the US as in the UK, the cost of meeting public sector pension liabilities is a problem says Philip Coggan

A landmark year?

September 2010

Pension funds must decide if their social, environmental and ethical investment practices are adequate, says Louise Rouse

Best of the commentators

September 2010

A summary of the best financial commentators

Bolt from the blue

August 2010

What started life as an obscure aside in the closing stages of the June emergency Budget has transformed into a lightening bolt for the whole pensions industry.

Pensions TV

Will the coalition really reinvigorate retirement?

1 July, 2010

Find out what Pensions Insight editor-in-chief Bob Campion thought about it on BBC Radio 4's Money Box

News

Fury over teachers' pension changes

8 September, 2010

Philips sells $451M NXP stake to own pension fund

8 September, 2010

Bloomberg Businessweek: Royal Philips Electronics NV said Tuesday it will sell its remaining stake in NXP Semiconductors NV to Philips' own British pension fund for euro350 million ($451 million).

Royal Mail's Pension Plan Narrows Deficit With Derivatives

8 September, 2010

Protests In France Over Pensions Age Change

8 September, 2010

Sky News: Up to 2.5 million French workers have taken to the streets in protest over proposed new pension reforms.

Pensioners raid emergency savings to make ends meet

8 September, 2010

BBC management to offer concessions over pensions row

8 September, 2010

The Guardian: Mark Thompson is expected to contact staff in the next couple of days, though details of the new package remain under wraps

Traditional retirement 'impossible'

8 September, 2010

The Press Association: Nearly three-quarters of Britons think a traditional retirement will no longer be possible in the future, a survey has indicated.

Top pension funds face volatile recovery

8 September, 2010

Citywire: A new report by Towers Watson has revealed the world’s largest pension funds saw their assets increase by over 8% in 2009, but it warns they are moving into a period of increased volatility.

PwC to axe final salary pensions

8 September, 2010

Financial Times: The UK arm of PwC plans to close its two defined benefit pension schemes to existing members from April in a move that will affect about 1,100 workers.

DS Smith plans change in pension policy

8 September, 2010

Financial Times: DS Smith, the packaging supplier and office products wholesaler, pointed to continued recovery in demand during the first quarter and good progress in the integration of Otor, the French corrugated...

More pension funds to buy leveraged loans

7 September, 2010

Global Pensions: Pension funds will become bigger investors in leveraged loans because the asset class provides more stable returns than equity and high-yield bonds, according to Harbourmaster Capital Management.

NAPF hires HM Treasury’s head of pensions

7 September, 2010

Professional Pensions: The National Association of Pension Funds has appointed current head of pensions at HM Treasury as its new director of policy.

PwC will close DB schemes to future accrual

7 September, 2010

Professional Pensions: PricewaterhouseCoopers is to close its two defined benefit pension schemes to future accrual from next April.

France faces general strike over retirement reforms

7 September, 2010

BBC News: Train services and flight traffic are expected to be severely disrupted France faces serious disruption as a nationwide strike begins to fight proposals to raise the retirement age.

Can we expect to live to 77, 89 or 100?

7 September, 2010

BBC News: One of the reasons why pensions have been described - by Nick Clegg, among others - as "unaffordable" is because people are living longer and placing an extra burden on the pension pot. So what is our...

Retail sales rise but consumers fear cuts

7 September, 2010

Telegraph: The back-to-school season and summer discounting helped to drive a 2.8pc rise in total retail sales in August compared with a year earlier, but the British Retail Consortium said impending austerity measures...

Break-ups not the key, says bank industry

7 September, 2010

FT.com: The government’s Commission on Banking should back away from considering a break-up of the country’s most powerful lenders and focus instead on high-street competition, says the chief of the body that represents...

Money market fund protection unlikely to continue

7 September, 2010

Global Pensions: Investors in struggling money market funds are less likely to receive financial support from fund sponsors post-crisis, research from Moody's warns.

Four in 10 Lib Dem voters would not vote for party again, says poll

7 September, 2010

Independent: The Liberal Democrats have lost the support of almost four in 10 of the people who backed the party in May, according to an opinion poll for The Independent.

Flat hiring rate casts doubt on recovery

7 September, 2010

FT.com: Employers expect a “static” rate of recruitment for the remainder of this year, according to new research, underlining concerns about the momentum of economic recovery.

Focus

Housekeeping

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