The market value of Canadian employer-sponsored pension funds grew 1.7% in the third quarter, marking the fifth consecutive quarterly increase, says Statistics Canada.
Pension fund assets totalled $1.46 trillion, up from $1.44 trillion at the end of the second quarter.
Assets held in bonds grew 2.9%, and real estate assets increased 3.3% in value. The market value of stocks edged down 0.4%, and mortgages declined 1.2%.
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Foreign investments in Canadian pension funds rose 2.4% in the third quarter, accounting for about one-third of total pension fund investments.
Pension fund revenue fell 11.5% in the third quarter, as a result of a 6.9% decline in employer and employee contributions and a 26.5% decline in investment income.
Expenditures grew 26.5% as losses from the sale of securities rose. With reduced revenue, net income fell 39.3% in the third quarter to $13.9 billion.
More than 6.2 million Canadian workers are members of employer-sponsored pension plans. Of this group, 5.2 million (83.6%) workers belong to pension plans with assets managed by trusteed funds. The remaining members have assets managed by insurance company contracts.
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