October 2023

UK. Govt urged to using ‘more timely’ data for state pension triple lock

The government should consider using more timely inflation and earnings growth data as part of long-term plans for the state pension triple lock, Aegon has said. The September inflation figure that could be used for the state pension increase in April will be announced next week (18 October), although it is expected to be below the 8.5 per cent earnings growth figure for May-July, which was published in August. While Aegon acknowledged that state pension rises need to be confirmed early...

U.S. Public Pension Funds Show Moderate Improvement in Q3

Today, Equable Institute released a mid-year update to its State of Pensions 2023 report. The analysis finds the aggregate funded ratio for U.S. state and local retirement systems are on track to improve from 75.0% in 2022 to 78.8% in 2023, based on data available through September 30th, 2023. Equable Institute estimates that unfunded liabilities will total $1.39 trillion for the 2023 fiscal year, compared to $1.59 trillion at the end of 2022. As more data becomes available about fiscal year 2023,...

Pension deal agreed for UK academics but divisions over pay remain unsolved

University staff will have their pension benefits restored by next April under an agreement reached between Universities UK (UUK) and the University and College Union (UCU), which represents over 120,000 researchers and teaching staff. UCU members have taken 69 days of strike action since 2018 to defend their pension benefits. But the union has vowed to keep the pressure on as it seeks concessions on pay and job security. UCU has balloted its members and will know by the...

UK. TfL pension fund on track to reduce carbon emissions by 2030

The Transport for London (TfL) pension fund estimates that it will reduce its carbon emissions by 56% by 2030, according to its latest Net Zero Carbon Journey update. So far, the fund has reduced its absolute carbon emissions by 30% since 2016, despite the fund being 40% larger. The fund is also ahead of where it needs to be on its net-zero journey in its active public portfolio with a weighted average carbon intensity (WACI) reduction 18% ahead of target and...

U.K. investment managers see assets dip 12% in 2022

Assets managed by the U.K. investment management industry fell to £8.8 trillion ($10.61 trillion) at the end of 2022, a 12% decrease from the previous year, according to the Investment Association's annual Investment Management Survey. The survey released Oct. 10 attributed the drop to a broad-based market correction reflecting monetary policy changes, inflation, the Ukraine war and other global uncertainties. "The markets experienced an unusual correlation in the direction of travel for both global equities and bonds," the survey report said. Sharp...

U.K. investment managers see assets dip 12% in 2022

Assets managed by the U.K. investment management industry fell to £8.8 trillion ($10.61 trillion) at the end of 2022, a 12% decrease from the previous year, according to the Investment Association's annual Investment Management Survey. The survey released Oct. 10 attributed the drop to a broad-based market correction reflecting monetary policy changes, inflation, the Ukraine war and other global uncertainties. "The markets experienced an unusual correlation in the direction of travel for both global equities and bonds," the survey report...

What’s wrong with private market valuations and why do UK pension funds care?

Britain's Financial Conduct Authority said last week a review of risks in markets for unlisted assets would check how valuations are being undertaken and whether any risks could spread into banking. WHY IS THE REGULATOR WORRIED? Stock markets and prices of government bonds have been hit by expectations of higher interest rates for a longer period than initially anticipated. Prices of private, unlisted assets have remained relatively high, raising questions about how valuations are conducted and if a reckoning is due. WHY...

U.K. investors turn up the heat on boards for climate transition plans

Investors with a collective £1.8 trillion ($2.2 trillion) in assets told high-emitting FTSE 350 companies that they expect to see climate transition plans on the agenda at their next annual meetings. The 18 investors include the Local Authority Pension Fund Forum, CCLA Investment Management, Sarasin & Partners and Ethos Foundation. In letters to corporate chairmen at 35 companies, the investors said that for the past two years they asked the corporate boards to provide shareholders with the opportunity to vote on...

DB schemes’ sustainability reporting will be ‘ineffective’ without integrated approach

Defined benefit (DB) pension schemes have been warned they will lack the information needed to understand how nature- and climate-related risks impact them without an integrated approach to sustainability reporting. In a briefing note on Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD), Hymans Robertson highlighted key actions asset owners should take to try and ensure successful TNFD reporting. TNFD published its final recommendations for nature-related risk management and disclosures in September. The recommendations aim to outline the relationship between nature, business and financial capital,...

Education gaps and time constraints: The ESG burdens facing UK pension trustees

With ESG rapidly rising up the agenda for UK pension schemes, their often overstretched trustee boards have been grappling with how to ensure it gets enough time on agendas and how to educate themselves on fast-moving developments. Janice Turner, co-chair of the Association of Member Nominated Trustees (AMNT), told Responsible Investor that the proportion of trustee time taken up by ESG matters has been increasing every year, especially due to enhanced regulatory requirements. “I would assume that ESG is an agenda item at...