Talking head: The Pension Protection Fund's Stephen Rice uses the Purple Book to demonstrate that while certain DB asset allocation trends are tailing off, the derisking journey has some way to run.

There were signs in the ninth edition, published in October, that the percentage of all defined benefit schemes open to new members and future accrual may be levelling off after large falls between 2006 and 2012.

The percentage of open schemes fell only marginally, having not changed between 2012 and 2013.

The percentage of schemes closed to new members but open to future accrual fell slightly to 53 per cent of the total, while the percentage of schemes closed to both new members and future accrual rose to 32 per cent from 30 per cent.

Source: PPF Purple Book 2014

There are also indications that some of the major asset allocation trends may be tailing off.

Between 2006 and 2013 the share of equities in total assets fell steadily to 35 per cent from 61 per cent, while the gilt and fixed income share rose from to 45 per cent to 28 per cent.

However, in 2014 the equity share fell slightly while the gilt and fixed interest share also fell.

Nevertheless, some of the earlier trends continued. For the sixth successive year, the UK proportion of total equity holdings fell to 29 per cent in 2014 from 31 per cent in 2013, while the overseas share rose.

The proportion in unquoted equities also increased for the fifth successive year.

Click here to view analysis of five key charts from the PPF's Purple Book

Special employer contributions amounted to £17bn during 2014, down a little on the previous year, but still high by historical standards.

Meanwhile, inflation and interest rate hedging business has increased markedly since the first quarter of 2013.

Scheme funding, as measured by our monthly PPF 7800 Index, has deteriorated markedly

During the same period the value of risk-transfer deals was £22bn, of which 49 per cent was longevity swaps, 31 per cent buy-ins and 20 per cent buyouts. 

Although some of the risk-reduction trends evident in recent years stabilised in 2014, it is unclear at this stage whether this is something longer lasting.

The experience in the year to March 2014 may, for example, have reflected the improvement in the economy and in scheme funding.

But it is worth noting that since then, scheme funding, as measured by our monthly PPF 7800 Index, has deteriorated markedly.

Although the pace of derisking may be slowing it probably still has a long way to go.

Stephen Rice is chief actuary at the Pension Protection Fund