Good news has been a rare commodity in Iceland in recent months, but last week the tiny Nordic nation’s music industry got a boost when the country scooped second prize in the Eurovision song contest. It seems the nation’s pension schemes are not in too bad a shape either.

Several of them lost as little as 4% last year, according to Robin Creswell, managing director at investment managers Payden & Rygel, which manages assets for three of the country's larger schemes.