clipped from: www.ft.com   

Strains in pensions systems, in both private and public provision, threaten to turn the financial crisis over the past two years into a social crisis lasting decades, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development warned on Tuesday.

Future incomes from public pensions are not immune from the financial crisis, the OECD warned because stretched public finances will prevent countries augmenting public provision and might lead to cuts.

The losses in private pension schemes were highest - at over 25 per cent - in countries, such as Ireland, Australia and the US, where the greatest proportion was invested in equities. Losses in Germany, Mexico and the Czech Republic were correspondingly lower
because private pensions were heavily invested in bonds
private pensions plans lost 23 per cent of their value last year while higher unemployment “leaves little room for more generous public pensions”.