After navigating the unpredictable markets of the past two decades, some defined benefit pension plan sponsors could be forgiven for wanting to seek out some certainty. But a new threat has emerged in the form of rapidly rising inflation and the possibility of rate increases after decades of persistent lows. The consumer price index increased […]
Nearly two years after the declaration of the global coronavirus pandemic and its subsequent impact on the worldwide economy, institutional investors are looking to the future with cautious optimism. Amid a recovering economy and rising inflation, pension plan sponsors are taking a long-term investment view and staying the course in the year ahead, while incorporating […]
The governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands is refinancing more than US$800 million worth of bonds following numerous attempts to save a public pension system that officials say faces collapse. Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. signed the bill on Wednesday and says the savings from improved interest rates will help stabilize the pension system for at least 30 years. […]
The strong performance of domestic equites in the last months of 2021 helped Canadian defined benefit pension plans secure median annual returns of 8.9 per cent, according to a new report by RBC Investor and Treasury Services. During the year, Canadian DB plans performed best during the second and fourth quarters, with median asset growth […]
The median Canadian defined benefit pension plan generated returns of 3.8 per cent in the final quarter of 2021, according to a new report by Northern Trust Corp. The strong performance was driven by a rebound in equity markets during a quarter marred by escalating energy prices and uncertainty about central bank policies. Over the year, […]
As has been the case for the past couple of years, we’re ending 2021 with as many questions as answers. On the surface, economic conditions seem to be improving, at least in Canada. National unemployment dropped to six per cent in November, the economy began to grow again after some coronavirus pandemic restrictions eased and […]
Four undergraduates from the Copenhagen Business School have claimed the top prize at the 2021 McGill International Portfolio Challenge by designing a collective defined contribution plan aimed at balancing the needs of older and younger plan members. Since 2017, the MPIC has challenged university students around the world to propose solutions to societal issues. This […]
In the early days of 2020, no one could have foreseen the social and economic havoc the coronavirus pandemic would wreak on the world. Nearly two years later, as markets and economies continue to recover, Canadian pension plan sponsors are looking to their money managers to help light the way to a brighter financial future. […]
Despite the low-yield environment, fixed income continues to play an important role for institutional investors looking to make their portfolios work harder in a risk-controlled fashion, said Jeffrey Moore, a portfolio manager at Fidelity Investments Inc., during a session at the Canadian Investment Review’s 2021 Global Investment Conference. “For the bond market to hurt, there needs […]
As places of economic activity, flood plains have their advantages — just ask the ancient Mesopotamians or the staff of the Winnipeg-based Teachers’ Retirement Allowance Fund. “Those of you who have been to our offices will know we’re right at the intersection of the Red and Assiniboine rivers. We are right in the flood plain […]