The average allocation to bonds remained broadly unchanged.

Only two percent of UK schemes invest directly in hedge funds but the average allocation among those is 9 percent.

Of the 5 percent investing in single strategy hedge funds the average allocation is 12 percent.

We expect an average allocation towards the lower end of the secondary market levels of 3.41%.

The average allocation to stocks fell to 48.8 percent from a multi-year high of 49.2 percent a month earlier.

Oil funds continue to have a markedly higher average allocation to so-called alternative investments, such as real estate and private equity, than other non-oil funds.

Some 54,000 people in the Republic qualify for shares with the average allocation expected to be between £1,746 and £2,583.

The average allocation to equities remained unchanged at 48.2 percent, though bond holdings fell to 36.6 percent from 38.2 percent.

The September survey found the average allocation to equities in global balanced portfolios fell to 55.2 percent from 55.8 percent in August.

But the average allocation to alternative investments, including hedge funds, private equity, and commodities increased to 11.9 percent, from 11.4 percent in March.

On the other hand, their average allocation rose to 5.6% from 4.6% - the biggest jump since the 2011 debt ceiling crisis.

In contrast, the average allocation to cash, commonly used as a buffer against market volatility, rose to 8.4 percent from 6.6 percent a month earlier.

The study noted that the average allocation to alternatives has doubled over the past five years to an all-time high of 20 percent in 2017.

European investors increased their average allocation to equities in global balanced portfolios to a multi-year high of 49.2 percent from 48.6 percent a month earlier.

Average allocation to alternatives fell to 5.1 percent, from 6.5 percent in January.

Average allocations to alternate investments edged up to 5.8 percent from 5.7 percent.