Individual pension accounts are growing in importance as a pillar of retirement incomes policy in the developed world. Policy-makers have generally assumed that by introducing pre-funded pension schemes, they can increase household wealth and thereby raise retirement incomes. However, there has been relatively little empirical work to confirm this. This paper uses microeconomic data from...

People in OECD countries will have to save more for their retirement as a result of the major pensions reforms carried out in recent years, according to this report. The average pension promise in 16 OECD countries studied was cut by 22 per cent. For women, the reduction was 25 per cent.

Leslie Nielson finds that the co-contributions scheme has delivered a number of benefits - in particular, that low income employees, particularly women, appear to have gained significant contributions to their superannuation fund balances - and that these benefits will compound over time via increased investment earnings. However, the scheme is not necessarily a panacea for...

This paper reviews recent developments in pensions policy in a range of countries and identifies some of the main forces driving the policy reform agenda. The paper brings a new perspective to some familiar issues, drawing specifically on the research and policy experience of Australia, China and the United States. Its basic message is that...

The profile of the Australian population is ageing. That is to say, the proportion of the population aged 65 years and over is rising and is projected to rise further over the next fifty years. Demographers say the group aged 65+ is likely to increase from around 12 per cent today to around 25 per...