Superannuation contributions made by employers slipped in the first quarter of 2012 below the record $15 billion in the fourth quarter of last year, despite strong growth in the economy, Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) figures have revealed.

Of the total $19.05 billion in superannuation contributions in the March quarter, 77 per cent, or $14.64 billion, was made up of employers' superannuation contributions, a drop of 2.5 per cent, or $372 million, from the $15.01 billion recorded in the December quarter 2011, according to the ABS.

Total compensation of employees, made up primarily of salaries and wages, was $175.30 billion in the March quarter, down 2.6 per cent from $179.96 billion in the fourth quarter of last year.

That fall in contributions came despite strong economic growth.

The economy grew by 1.3 per cent in the March quarter to be 4.3 per cent higher than a year earlier, the strongest annual growth rate since the September quarter 2007.

Employer contributions are contributions received from employers and include mandated employer contributions such as superannuation guarantee (SG) amounts, salary sacrifice contributions and voluntary employer contributions.

The $14.64 billion contribution to superannuation savings made by employers will add to the nation's superannuation savings pool, which was worth $1.31 trillion in the December 2011 quarter. Over the 12 months to December 2011, there was a 1.2 per cent rise in total estimated superannuation assets.

Separately, data published by the ABS in its Managed Funds publication last week showed the managed funds industry had $1.87 trillion in funds under management as at 31 March 2012, an increase of 5 per cent from the December quarter 2011 figure of $1.78 trillion.

Of this, $1.25 trillion was being managed by domestic fund managers, while $632 billion was being managed by offshore investment managers or invested directly into markets.

The bulk of managed funds' consolidated assets, which totalled $1.48 trillion, are invested in shares ($424.47 billion), followed by offshore assets ($256.14 billion), with deposits ($202.6 billion) close behind. Units in trusts follow at $167.56 billion, then property assets at $167.18 billion.

An increase in the SG is expected to add to the rate of growth in employer super contributions. The SG rate will be increased gradually with initial increments of 0.25 percentage points on 1 July 2013 and on 1 July 2014. Further increments of 0.5 percentage points will apply annually up to 2019/20, when the SG rate will be set at 12 per cent.