The U.S. economy has already sustained a soft landing, according to Michael Arone, chief investment strategist and managing director at State Street Global Advisors, during the Canadian Investment Review’s 2024 Investment Innovation Conference. The U.S. economy saw 4.9 per cent annualized growth in gross domestic product in the third quarter of 2023, he said, highlighting […]
In building a resilient portfolio, institutional investors can use lessons from the past to draw on market similarities throughout history. Speaking during a session sponsored by BNY Investments Canada at the Canadian Investment Review’s 2024 Investment Innovation Conference, Mitesh Sheth, multi-asset chief investment officer at Newton Investment Management, said many of the challenges investors have […]
The ratio of the market value of assets to the projected benefit obligation for a hypothetical benchmark plan changed little for global defined benefit pension plans in the third quarter of 2024, according to a new report by WTW. It found this ratio increased among DB plans in Brazil (0.9 per cent), Canada (1.2 per […]
The volatile global conditions of the last four years have culminated in a looming economic downturn, impacting defined contribution pension plan sponsors and members alike. On Oct. 3 at the Omni King Edward Hotel in Toronto, the 2024 DC Investment Forum highlighted the various tools and strategies that can help plan sponsors navigate turbulent economic waters […]
Rising food, energy and housing prices aren’t just pocketbook issues for consumers or election fodder for politicians, they’re also social risk factors, indicators of a country’s economic health and highly important to bond investors, said Reina Berlien, head of environmental, social and governance at Brandywine Global Investment Management. While ESG factors may not seem important […]
The rapid rise in the cost of living in 2022 and into 2023 underscored the need for target-date funds to not just protect against standard inflation, but inflation shocks as well. The problem that presents is the more inflation protection that’s added into a portfolio, the lower the returns, said Nick Nefouse, managing director, global […]
Defined benefit pension plans support more than one million beneficiaries in Ontario and these benefits provided more than $34.6 billion to the province’s gross domestic product in 2023, according to a new report by the Conference Board of Canada on behalf of the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan, the OPSEU Pension Trust and the University […]
An altering macroeconomic environment means that cost management requires continual attention by pension plans and other institutional investors. Today, as inflation and higher-for-longer rates exert upward pressure on institutional investors’ costs in a variety of areas, from technology to team member salaries, it’s time once again to re-evaluate the fees being paid to external asset […]
The Ontario Municipal Employees’ Retirement System earned a net investment return of 4.4 per cent for the first six months of this year, helped by the performance of its investments in public equities and strong contributions from its holdings in private credit and infrastructure. The fund had a good start to the year, reflecting the […]
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec returned 4.2 per cent in the first half of 2024, underperforming its benchmark of 4.6 per cent. As at June 30, 2024, the Caisse’s net assets totalled $452 billion. Its average annualized returns over five and 10 years were six per cent and 7.1 per cent, respectively. […]