Global pension funds control $10 trn assets

Country

Asset size ($bn) Government Pension InvestmentJapan935 Government PensionNorway286 ABPNetherlands274 California Public EmployeesUS218 National PensionKorea203 Federal Retirement ThriftUS188 Government EmployeesSouth Africa178 California State TeachersUS149 New York State CommonUS144 Local Government OfficialsJapan137  Planning for retirement income is becoming increasingly important as governments look for ways to cut spending. So-called sovereign funds, set up by countries to save for retiree payments, are becoming increasingly popular, Watson Wyatt said.  The Government Employees Pension Fund of South Africa and Canada Pension both joined the ranks of the 20 largest funds in the past three years, Watson Wyatt said.  U.S. pension funds account for 43 percent of the assets in the 300 largest funds, Japanese funds oversee 15 percent and UK funds are responsible for 7.1 percent, the survey showed.