Nervous trustees influenced by a raft of reports of increased scheme deficits are acting overprudently, an analyst has warned.

The Universities Superannuation Scheme’s (USS’s) rumoured leaseback deal with Tesco should be a sound investment, a property expert has claimed.

Climate change is the biggest concern among pension funds looking to invest responsibly, the PM socially responsible investment (SRI) survey has found.

Sipp providers and investment managers must buck up their ideas when it comes to handling in specie transfers, a Sipp expert has blasted.

The retail annuity market is set for a massive shake-up in the same way the bulk annuity space has exploded over the past few years, an annuity expert has predicted.

Prudential has come under fire for “bombarding” IFAs and customers with recommendations about their with-profits annuity, to the point that it could be breaching treating customers fairly (TCF) guidelines.

The total assets managed in the UK by firms belonging to the Investment Management Association (IMA) have swelled by almost 10% from £3.1trn in 2006 to £3.4trn last year.

China’s dynamic growth looks set to continue as it makes its transition from an emerging to a developed economy, and even with a projected slowdown in 2008, we should still see 10% growth – far superior to the rest of the world. Rising incomes and a high savings rate are creating a burgeoning domestic consumption theme in China. In this respect China is a mirror image of the developed western economies – while the UK and US are grappling with high consumer indebtedness and a sharp slowdown on the high street, Chinese retail sales are growing at around 20% a year.

The Pensions Regulator has defended itself over industry criticism about the timing and clarity of its draft guidance on calculating transfer values.

Pension schemes must take extra precaution over how strong their sponsoring employer is, as the industry gears up to be hit by more insolvencies, and criticism emerges over how accurate the D&B failure scores are.

Personal recommendation from friends and acquaintances is the most popular way of selecting trustees, according to Trustee GAAPS, the search and selection firm.

Xafinity has told Pensions Management it is still on the hunt for more companies, and that it will snap up another firm within the next 12 months.

Credit Suisse has been hit with a £5.6m fine as it fails to organise its business effectively, and the Financial Services Authority (FSA) gets tough on pricing errors and poor management.

Several household names in the pensions world have bucked the trend of huge losses in the first half of 2008.

Trustees and employers seeking to introduce more sophisticated investments into their defined contribution (DC) arrangements may be hampered by the increasing use of performance-related fees.

PM understands that following its purchase by HCL earlier this year, Liberata Financial Services has put a book of business out to tender.

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) has warned the Conservatives would cause a “major fracture” in the current consensus on pension reform if they turn their backs on personal accounts.

One of the findings of the Pension Commission was the realisation that Britain has almost lost the savings habit. The ‘buy now, pay later’ generations have relied on easy credit instead of hard cash.

I t’s really not fair, is it? Summer is almost over and what have we seen of it? We all know people who wished for hotter summers. Well, now they’ve got what they wanted, I hope they’re happy that instead of the climate of the Riviera, we got south east Asia.

A strong economy has in the past smoothed the completion of covenant reviews, but the shortcomings of the process must be addressed now employers’ finances are not as stable

Now here’s some information for you. Apparently the one-millionth word is about to be added to the English language. I mean, how good is that? I don’t know how they know it, but experts are saying that the tally of 995,844 ‘official’ words that currently exist are being added to at such a rate that our millionth word will probably pop up on April 29, 2009.

Owen Walker speaks to TUC general secretary Brendan Barber about the pivotal role of the body in pensions reform, and its campaign to empower trustees to actively engage with companies

In depressive economic times, with the threat of recession hanging over consumers and employers alike, maybe the answer is to approach the problem with more optimism

Michael Reynal explains the philosophy behind his approach to emerging markets investing and reveals the secrets behind choosing the best stocks to guarantee excellent returns

As economic turmoil prevails, many asset classes are being forced to adapt to survive. Private equity is no exception, and is set to flourish further as investors seek diversification

Responsible investment has climbed up the agenda over recent years, but it has developed from an ethics-centric enterprise to a market focused on solid returns

Mark Rowlands: Investment platforms have been around for five or so years and their market penetration seems to be accelerating. That is driven partly by DC pension schemes looking for more sophisticated solutions as their asset pool and cash flows have increased, but also by some defined benefit (DB) schemes with small asset pools that are looking for more sophisticated solutions and greater flexibility. Platforms can provide greater diversification of managers and asset classes, improved operational efficiency and reduced out-of-market risk in the event of manager changes. Some clients, typically those who have a 100% passive approach, are still comfortable buying from pools or segregated vehicles, however, those wanting different solutions are increasingly looking into platforms.

John Moret: From a Financial Services Authority (FSA) perspective, suitability seems to be linked to two or three key issues. One would be pricing and whether the product is suitable when compared with other types of personal pension that might be available. That also raises the issue of disclosure, which could be extended to cover not only price, but also the proposition – in particular the price you’re prepared to pay for the investment flexibility. Another important issue to consider is the principle of treating customers fairly.

The effect of poor quality data can wreak havoc for administrators and scheme members, leading to increased liabilities

Alan Pickering, well known in the UK pensions industry for his report on the simplification of rules governing private pension provision in 2002, is to become chairman of Bestrustees.

Towers Perrin has hired Dave Roberts as a senior consultant for cross-border pensions.

JLT Benefit Solutions has named Des Hogan as a senior consultant to help the firm expand its defined benefit and defined contribution businesses.