The deficits of the top 300 European companies' pension schemes, which have combined liabilities of more than €1.3 trillion ($1.8 trillion), have dropped by 60% over the last 12 months as a result of capital investment from Asia and higher savings, according to Merrill Lynch.

Karen Olney, equity strategist at the bank, said the latest pension deficit total for the companies in the FTSE Eurotop 300 index is reported by those companies to stand at €252bn, down from €332bn at the end of September the previous year.