Total assets in the 300 largest pension funds in the world last year rose by 11%, to a total of USD12.5trn, up by about USD1.2trn since 2009, according to a study by Pensions & Investments and Towers Watson. Assets increased by 8% the previous year. The rankings show, however, that despite an increase in total assets last year, annualised growth for funds as a whole were down to slightly over 6% over the past five years.By region, Europe has the highest five-year growth rate, at 11%, compared with Asia at 9%, and North America at 1%, while the combined growth rate for Latin America and Africa was 15% in the same period, although assets started from a lower level. The study also finds that the 3,000 largest pension funds in the world now represent over 47% of assets in pension funds worldwide. The survey shows that defined-benefit funds (DB) represent 70% of assets. DB assets rose by 8% in 2010, compared with 13% for defined-contribution funds (DC), and 21% for retirement planning funds.According to Thierry de la Noue, head of the Investment department at Towers Watson Paris, “the largest pension funds in the world have given the composition of their assets a more defensive bias in the past five years, in order to contront persistent volatility, and an unpredictable growth environment, so that the 20 largest funds now hold equal proportions of equities and bonds (40% each), while the remainder is in alternative investments and cash. Meanwhile, funds in Asia-Pacific, and particularly Japan, have retained high exposures to bonds, in keeping with the prevailing investment convictions in these regions, which explain an allocation of 50% of assets to bonds from the largest funds.”The study also finds that at 34%, the United States remains the country with the largest volume of pension fund assets, although that percentage has been falling steadily for five years. The study finds that 54 new funds joined the rankings in the past five years, from Australia (11), Denmark (5), Mexico (4), Germany (4), and Finland (4). The study may be found at the following address: http://www.towerswatson.com/united-kingdom/research/5351

The Austrian developer IC Projektentwicklung has sold the BIZ 2 office building (18,500 square metres) in Vienna to the German firm Deka Immobilien GmbH for an undisclosed sum. The property will be added to the portfolio of the open-ended fund WestInvest ImmoValue, which is reserved for institutional investors.As of the end of July, Deka Immobilien Investment and its sister company WestInvest managed a atotal of EUR22bn in open-ended real estate funds.

J.P. Morgan Asset management announced on Wednesday, 7 September that it has launched, and registered in Sweden, the JPMorgan Funds – Global Mining Fund1, which invests in mining sector equities.The global portfolio of the fund, which is composed of about 50 to 100 positions on businesses of various cap sizes, is invested in companies of the mining sector or other associated areas of activity worldwide. The fund is focusing on mining companies that produce various metals, steel, gold, precious metals, minerals, and aluminum, and which have low production costs, promising plans, and excellent management.CharacteristicsISIN code A (acc) EUR: LU0362757584Date of inception: 08/02/2011Benchmark index: HSBC Global Mining Index (Total Return Net)Net assets in the fund: EUR2.9bn

Assets under management at Swisscanto throughout the group were down by CHF3.4bn to CHF54.7bn as of the end of its fiscal year on 30 June, of which a decline of CHF3.9bn were due to the strength of the Swiss franc alone, Swisscanto announced in a statement released on 7 September.Following withdrawals of capital from money market funds due to interest rates, and to reorganisations at institutional clients, the group has posted a net outflow of CHF1.9bn, the statement says.According to market statistics from SFA/Lipper, which is using a new database, Swisscanto has retained fourth place in the period under review, after UBS, Credit Suisse and Pictet, with a market share of 7.3%.

UFG-LFP has announced the launch of the LFP Grands Vignobles de France fund, which aims to create long-term value through two drivers of performance: expected appreciation in the value of vineyard real estate, the operation of the selected properties.The economic environment is highly favourable for wine makers, a statement says, due to the development of emerging economies and an increase in the more leisured social classes there, with, as a corollary, the development of new consumption habits that privilege high-end or luxury products. The fund’s investments will concentrate on French “premium” wine regions, including Bordeaux, the Rhône valley, Burgundy and the Loire valley.The product, a closed fund with an expected duration of 15 years, will be managed by UFG-REM, the real estate affiliate of the UFG-LFP group.The LFP Grands Vignobles the France fund is primarily aimed at institutional investors, but also at high net worth private investors.CharacteristicsLegal format: French-registered contractual SicavInvestors concerned: Authorised investors under article 413-25 of RGAMFClassification: Diversified OPCVMValuation frequency: monthly, until 31/12/2012, and quarterly thereafterRecommended investment duration: 15 yearsFund Manager: UFG REMDepository: BNP Paribas Securities ServicesSales outlet: UFG-LFP FranceMinimal initial subscription: EUR250,000Management fee: Maximum 1.20% net of taxes of net AUM in the fund

The members of the International Corporate Governance Network (ICGN) will next week hold their annual conference in Paris, from 12 September. At the conference they will debate a series of recommendations for risk management, management fees, remuneration structures, integration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria, voting rights, and commission issues, which may in the future be included in investment mandates. If the recommendations are ratified, they may lead members of the network, which represents total assets of about USD12trn, much of it in pension funds, to integrate at least a part of the recommendations into their investment contracts. In risk management, the recommendations would have managers disclose details of their portfolio and management risks. In response to the financial crisis, the ICGN suggests that managers should also deploy a “systemic responsibility” policy, with information about the impact of risks on the stability of the markets, and on particular asset classes. In the chapter on integration of ESG criteria, the ICGN claims that better organisation of remuneration programs, and deployment of integrity standards for the conduct of personnel and/or for financial information, may have a long-term influence on the performance of assets. The ICGN points out that these recommendations come as additions to existing recommendations, such as the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN-PRI), or other specific dispositions for certain asset classes (private equity, hedge funds).

Switzerland will not transmit any confidential banking information to the United States, Micheline Caly-Rey confirmed on 7 September, in response to rumours of an ultimatum from Washington. Any potential exchange of information could take place only within a legal framework under the double taxation convention.The president of Switzerland sought to put an end to speculation about a potential disclosure of the names of US banking clients suspected of tax fraud with accounts in Switzerland, many of them at Credit Suisse.“There have been talks exclusively about statistical questions,” Calmy-Rey told the press on Wednesday, at a press conference to announce her decision to step down at the end of this year. The talks have not covered the issue of banking confidentiality, she announced, but would answer no further questions.

The Singapore sovereign wealth fund Temasek announced earlier this week in a document submitted to the Hong Kong stock exchange that it has acquired about one third of Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s stake in China Construction Bank, valued at about USD2.8bn. The deal brings Temasek’s stake in the Chinese bank to 8.1%, up from 6.27% previously.

Carlos Rivero, who for two years has been head of the international fund platform at Ahorro Corporación, has been recruited by Inversis Bank Institutional, Funds People reports.Rivero joins Gustavo Montoya on the team in charge of the investment fund distribution platform, which is a part of Inversis Bank Institutional, a unit led by Salvador Martín.

The former head of the German and international sales support team at F&C Asset Management, Manuela Fröhlich, has concluded the sabbatical which she bagan in November 2010. On 1 October, she will join the new London office of the Luxembourg-based Alceda Fund Management (EUR4.5bn in assets under administration) as managing director, head of global fund sales. In this role, she will be in charge of development for an international network of third-party distributors for open-ended funds from Alceda.

Last month, with the increased market volatility, the European markets of NYSE Euronext posted an average of 14,658 on-book trades of ETFs, 90.7% more than in August 2010. As a result, the number of trades in the first eight months of 2011 are now up 10.6% compared with January-August last year. The previous all-time record for trading activity, set in May 2010, with 295,888 trades, was beaten by far, with a total of 337,862 trades.The average trading volume per transaction in August came out to EUR618.2m, 108% higher than in August 2010. For January-August, the total comes to EUR14.2bn, while the previous record in January 2008 was EUR14.8bn.As of 31 August, total assets in all ETFs listed in European markets of NYSE Euronext totalled EUR126bn, 6.8% more than one year previously.On 31 August, these markets had 572 ETF funds, listed 670 times. Since the beginning of 2011, 131 ETFs have been launched, of which 103 were primary listings, and 28 were secondary listings.The average spread for all ETFs listed in August was 28.5 basis points.

De sources concordantes, la société de private equity dirigée par Guy Hands aurait engagé une procédure devant la justice britannique pour obtenir la publication de documents concernant la valorisation d’EMI à l’occasion de son combat perdu au bénéfice de Citigroup en février dernier pour le contrôle de l’éditeur musical.

Démentant des informations du Tagesanzeiger, le gouvernement helvète a affirmé n’avoir livré aucune donnée relative à des clients américains détenant des comptes en Suisse, résistant à une injonction des Etats-Unis. «Nous ne donnerons pas d’autres détails sur les négociations en cours», a déclaré la ministre des affaires étrangères Micheline Calmy-Rey.

La croissance a rebondi de 1,2 % après une contraction plus faible que prévu au premier trimestre. La devise s’envole à 1,0606 contre dollar

Les stratégistes jugent peu probable que la BoJ suive la BNS en fixant un plafond au yen. Les réserves de change du pays ont grossi en août

L'activité a été mitigée voire faiblissante dans la plupart des districts entre mi-juillet et fin août, indique le dernier Livre Beige

Les pays du G7, réunis demain à Marseille, sont partagés entre relance et rigueur budgétaire. La capitalisation des banques européennes s’invite au menu

La France a finalement consenti à introduire une règle de majorité simple inversée dans la procédure de surveillance budgétaire

Les députés pourraient être amenés à se prononcer dès la fin de la semaine sur ce projet qui vise à ramener le budget à l'équilibre en 2013

Selon la haute juridiction, le gouvernement allemand doit obtenir le feu vert de la commission budgétaire du Parlement pour toute nouvelle aide

Les ministres des Finances et les banquiers centraux des pays du G7, réunis demain à Marseille, sont partagés entre relance et rigueur budgétaire, et ne devraient donc pas annoncer de mesures coordonnées. La capitalisation des banques européennes s’invite par ailleurs à l’ordre du jour.

Vote italien et décision de la Cour constitutionnelle allemande ont soulagé les pressions

Sept des douze districts de la Fed ont fait part d’une activité mitigée ou faiblissante entre mi-juillet et fin août, indique le dernier Livre Beige.

Les dépôts auprès de la BCE s’accélèrent

Le gouvernement a placé un milliard de dollars d’obligations à 10 ans au taux de 3,3%, soit un écart avec le 10 ans américain de 130 points de base

La production industrielle britannique a reculé contre toute attente en juillet de 0,2% en raison surtout d’une baisse de l’extraction de pétrole et de gaz, selon des données officielles publiées mercredi. Ces dernières laissent entendre que l’industrie britannique a commencé le troisième trimestre en étant quasiment au point mort, alors que l'économie du pays vient d’enchaîner neuf mois de croissance quasi-nulle.

La Cour constitutionnelle allemande a tranché ce matin en rejetant les plaintes visant à bloquer la participation de l’Allemagne au plan d’aide à la Grèce, en la jugeant conforme à la constitution. Suite à cette décision, la Chancelière allemande, Angela Merkel, a déclaré que «la Cour a confirmé la marche suivie par le gouvernement pour combattre la crise de la zone euro». Toutefois, le Tribunal de Karlsruhe a stipulé que le Gouvernement d’outre-Rhin doit obtenir l’approbation de la commission budgétaire du Parlement avant de pouvoir débloquer toute nouvelle garantie dans le cadre du fonds européen de stabilité financière, le FESF. Les Sages ont précisé que cette décision ne devait pas être vue comme un «blanc seing» pour une participation à un futur plan de sauvetage. En réaction, les taux à 10 ans allemands se sont tendus de 6 pb à 1,90%, tandis que les taux français ont stagné à 2,68%. Le spread contre OAT s’est ainsi resserré de 6 pb à 78 pb. Tandis que leurs homologues italiens et espagnols se sont détendus, dans l’ordre, de 11 pb à 5,38% et de 8 pb à 5,10%, ceux de la Grèce ont continué à se tendre de 25 pb à 20,06%.

Chypre a annoncé qu’elle envisageait de demander à la Banque centrale européenne (BCE) de racheter des obligations souveraines détenues par des banques locales qui ont dû passer de lourdes dépréciations dans le sillage de la crise grecque. Les banques chypriotes, habituellement bénéficiaires, ont enregistré la semaine dernière des pertes au premier semestre, du fait de leur participation à un programme d'échange sur la dette grecque. Cet échange leur coûterait plus d’un demi-milliard d’euros en dépréciations.

Il est envisageable que le Benelux (Belgique, Pays-Bas, Luxembourg) se joigne à l’initiative franco-allemande d’harmonisation de l’impôt sur les sociétés, déclare le ministre belge des Finances Didier Reynders dans un entretien publié mercredi par le quotidien Le Soir. Le président Nicolas Sarkozy et la chancelière Angela Merkel prévoient pour 2013 l’adoption d’un impôt sur les sociétés commun «dans son assiette comme dans son taux».

La banque centrale de Suède a laissé à 2% son taux d’intervention mercredi et ajouté qu’en raison d’une détérioration des perspectives économiques, elle remettait à plus tard tout nouveau durcissement monétaire. «La situation des finances publiques inquiète de plus en plus à l'étranger et les perspectives de croissance mondiale se sont dégradées; ainsi, le ralentissement de l'économie suédoise sera sans doute plus marqué que ce qui était prévu en juillet», explique la Riksbank.