Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced plans to overhaul Germany's pension system in the second half of the year, citing urgency due to the retiring baby boomer generation. Key proposals include a capital-funded savings scheme and linking retirement age to life expectancy, potentially raising it to 70 by 2092.
South Korea's personal pension savings grew by 10.8% to 198 trillion won ($129 billion) in 2025, driven by increased interest in retirement planning and a strong stock market rally. Subscriptions rose across all age groups, particularly among younger individuals.
Russia is discussing a plan to automatically transfer dormant pension savings from the Social Fund to a Long-Term Savings Program (LSP). This would change the status of the funds from state-controlled to individual property, potentially boosting the pension system's stability and providing long-term investment resources for the economy.
The revived Pensions Commission will urge ministers to address the significant gender gap in retirement savings, where women have half the pension wealth of men. The report highlights the 'motherhood penalty' and women's greater likelihood of part-time work contributing to the disparity.
Two Hong Kong policy think tanks released a survey finding that younger residents aged 18-40 have a weaker desire for home ownership (5.06/10) compared to those over 40 (5.8/10). Among those not eager to buy, 46.4% cited unaffordable flat prices and 21.3% cited mortgage burden. The study calls for allowing young families to use mandatory pension savings for home purchases, offering housing loans to first-time buyers, and halving down payment requirements for middle-income buyers of government-subsidised flats.
