Louisiana Firefighters Retirement System, Baton Rouge, hired Putnam to...

Louisiana Firefighters Retirement System, Baton Rouge, hired Putnam to manage $20 million in active international large-cap core equities for its $649 million defined benefit plan, said Mike Hemphill, chairman of the board of trustees. Partial funding comes from a $12 million Louisiana insurance premium tax that helps fund public safety retirement systems; the additional $8 million will come from rebalancing, said Mr. Hemphill. The domestic equity industry is not performing so well, so the board decided to try international equities, he said.