More from the OECD: Australian pension funds have the most aggressive asset allocation into equities
I would say that the dominance of "defined contribution" rather than "defined benefit" schemes in Australia goes a long way to explaining this phenonemon. Individuals take the risk on how big their eventual pension will be and respond to this risk by trying to grow their nest egg as rapidly as possible. By contrast, around the world, pension funds with defined benefit schemes see their risk as one of liability management and, in particular, worry about their exposure to interest rates and inflation and so make greater use of bonds.
Hat-tip again to @dannyyee for the link.
Footnotes:
1. The "Other assets" category includes loans, land and buildings, unallocated insurance contracts, private investment funds, and other investments.
2. In the "Other assets" category, loans represent 29.3% of total investments.
3. Data refer only to personal pension plans.
4. In the "Other assets" category, unallocated insurance contracts represent 23.4% of total investments. "Other investments" comprise real estate, and undertakings for collective investments in transferable securities (UCITs).
5. "Other investments" are made of short-term accounts payable to fund managers (commissions) and payable loans.
6. Data refer to the year 2007.
7. In the "Other assets" category, unallocated insurance contracts represent 9.5% of total investments.
Source: OECD Global Pension Statistics.
