Mercer is proud to present its 2011 European asset allocation survey

This year our survey covered over 1,100 plans from 13 countries, with total assets of over €550 billion.

We continue to see a move away from equities as bonds continue to remain the preferred asset class for most European countries. We also noticed a marked increase in the use of non-traditional asset classes by larger markets such as Ireland, Germany and the Netherlands, with all showing increased exposure since last year.

Three key findings emerged from this year’s survey:

• Re-emergence of inflation as a concern – 80% of respondents are now more concerned about the threat of increasing inflation than they were last year and many are taking action to protect their assets.

• Broader search for growth continues – Pension plans are not just seeking growth within equity markets; the results have shown that investors are allocating money across the spectrum of opportunities, from emerging market equity to debt and currency, and into associated opportunities such as commodities and infrastructure.

• Diversification of bond exposure – Investors are seeking bond investments that will increase the levels of yield within their portfolios, leading many plans to consider alternative debt markets such as high yield and emerging market debt, and some opportunistic ideas such as distressed or mezzanine debt.

Mercer is a leading global provider of consulting, outsourcing and investment services. Mercer works with clients to solve their most complex benefit and human capital issues, designing and helping manage health, retirement and other benefits. It is a leader in benefit outsourcing. Mercer’s investment services include investment consulting and multi-manager investment management. Mercer’s 20,000 employees are based in more than 40 countries. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc., which lists its stock (ticker symbol: MMC) on the New York and Chicago stock exchanges.