Assets at the world's 300 largest pension funds rose by almost 60% over the last three years to $10.4 trillion (€7.6 trillion), according to a new study, which predicted that those controlled by national governments were likely to set the pace of change in future because of their engagement on political and social issues.

Assets under management for corporate and state pension funds grew 58% between the end of 2003 and December 2006, according to a study by investment consultancy Watson Wyatt and magazine Pensions & Investments.