OUR European North and Scandinavia again occupy the first places in the ranking of countries in terms of the quality of pension systems and the income of pensioners, as well as the retirement age. Iceland, the Netherlands and Denmark are in the top three this year according to the global pension index. Mercer CFA Institute. The corresponding report, however, does not stop at assessing countries, but goes on to conclude that something must change in the pension systems of European countries, which, as has been known for many years, may soon become unsustainable.

The US is in 20th place, China is in 36th place – the aging of the population is a “wound” for Europe.

The three countries in the top three positions without being unscathed by the negative developments in the economy are the fact that they have stable pension systems funded by the public and the private sector in parallel, while demonstrating a “high level of reliability and integrity”. “. In its report, the Institute in question identifies the well-established pathologies represented by the pension systems of European countries, as they are primarily threatened by the aging of the population, the constant growth of public debt and low birth rates, the disappearance of the plague of the majority and more developed European countries. As Mercer points out, younger generations are leaving entering the labor market much later than previous generations, retiring or aiming to retire at the same age as older generations, while having higher life expectancy and living longer. e. something of all this must be given and it must be lost to the younger generations, even if it was given to the older generations.

As David Cox, a Mercer partner and lead author of this collaborative study, noted at the launch of the report, what is happening in many countries is: “. At the same time, the report highlights that today’s economic environment is characterized by wages that are not rising or rising very slowly, high and accelerating inflation, and declining returns on investments in very large asset classes, a combination that puts more pressure on the financial situation. pension funds. Among the measures recommended by the Mercer Institute to governments and society is to encourage older people to participate in the labor market, as this will increase their savings and reduce the number of years they will spend in retirement.

Outside of European countries, the superpower ranks 20th out of 44 countries, with Portugal at 24th. Of particular interest is the fact that China, although the second largest economy in the world, is ranked 36th. Thailand is in last place, followed immediately by the Philippines, Argentina and India. In a related analysis of the problems associated with the pension systems of these Asian and Latin American countries, the Mercer Institute points out that they have some “desirable” features, but also have very large shortcomings that need to be addressed. It specifically notes that Mexico, despite being in 29th place, has significantly improved its performance in terms of pension reform.