THE average Irish pension fund performed strongly in 1995 with good investment returns, adding more than 17 per cent to the value of the State's biggest pension funds.
ESB Fund Managers achieved the highest returns, adding 23 per cent to the value of its funds over the 12-month period, according to separate surveys by independent pension consultants, Mercer and Irish Pensions Trust.
Other top performing funds over the year were Eagle Star, with growth of 22.2 per cent and Standard Life whose funds were up by 20 per cent. The poorest performer in 1995 was Equitable Life, which added 14.9 per cent to the value of its managed funds last year.
The good returns in 1995 follow a dismal year in 1994, when substantial investment losses wiped over 4 per cent off the value of the average pension fund.
Over the past five years, the survey shows that managed pension funds have, however, grown on average by 13.2 per cent a year. Five-year performances provide a more accurate gauge of a pension fund's performance, as pensions are by definition long-term investments.
The top performer over this five-year period was Bank of Ireland Asset Management, which has added 15.2 per cent to its funds annually. This was closely followed by Standard Life, which had annual growth of 14.5 per cent and Ulster Bank Investment Managers whose funds rose by 14.2 per cent a year over that period.
Irish Life had the worst performance, achieving below average returns over the past five years, adding 11.3 per cent to value of its funds each year. AIB Investment Managers recorded only slightly higher growth of 11.7 per cent.
Over the last 10 years, the returns are similar, with average yearly growth of 12.9 per cent, according to the survey.
The funds, which are invested in Irish and international stock and property markets, yielded substantial returns last year on the back of strong performances across many of the world's leading markets.
The Irish stock market alone, in which close to 30 per cent of Irish pension funds are invested, rose by 24.8 per cent in 1995.
Bank of Ireland was the top performing stock for fund managers, ending the year up 58 per cent. Other financial stocks such as AIB and Irish Life also rallied strongly giving good yields. The only disappointment was Smurfit, whose share price had fallen by 19 per cent by year end.
The Irish gilt market, where up to 20 per cent of the funds are invested, also surged ahead showing gains of 18.5 per cent over the year, while property investments saw average returns of 10.9 per cent.
The US was the best performing international market, which returned 31.4 per cent, as the market closed just off record highs. The UK market was also strong, with British stocks closing on an all time high, up 19.2 per cent on the year.
Lower interest rates helped Continental European markets in 1995, closing up 17.8 per cent on the previous year. Emerging markets, such as Singapore and Malaysia, however, failed to sparkle with the fallout from the Mexican currency crisis in 1994 still damaging investor confidence.
Japan was the only major international market to show a loss in 1995, with investment losses running at 3.8 per cent over the 12-month period.
