Canadian defined benefit pension plans’ solvency position rose in the first quarter of 2019, according to two new pension indexes. Representing the solvency ratio of a hypothetical plan, Mercer Canada’s index sat at 106 per cent on March 31, up from 102 per cent at the start of the year. The median solvency ratio of Mercer clients’ pension plans […]
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board is investing $750 million in Aqua America Inc., the second largest publicly traded water and wastewater utility based in the U.S. The investment is an important step in Aqua’s efforts to obtain permanent financing for their pending acquisition of Peoples Natural Gas Co., according to a press release, which noted the acquisition will […]
With Brexit looming, European investor confidence dipped while North American confidence rose slightly in March compared to February, according to State Street Corp.’s latest global investor confidence survey. Globally, investor confidence rose 0.4 points to 71.3 in March. Confidence in North America rose to 68.3 from 66.2, while it declined in Europe by 7.8 points to […]
Foyston, Gordon & Payne Inc. is making changes to its global equity team. The organization has appointed John Di Re as associate portfolio manager. With 17 years of investment experience, Di Re was most recently a senior principal with sector expertise in health care and industrials at the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan. He also had a key role managing […]
The British Columbia Investment Management Corp. said on April 4, 2019 it will vote against the proposed merger of Goldcorp Inc. and Newmont Mining Corp., highlighting its disapproval of a $US12 million retirement allowance for Goldcorp’s chair. “The retirement allowance is almost triple the previously disclosed entitlement of US$4.5 million,” said the BCI in a […]
The U.S. customized target-date fund market grew to US$430 billion at the end of 2017, according to the Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association. The DCIIA’s inaugural survey on the market, which included data from 65 plans with a total of 673 different funds, found the majority of these funds are allocated to a mix of equities and fixed income. […]
While investing in products underpinned by a benchmark can offer opportunities for investors, these products and their benchmarks are not without problems, according to research from the Healthy Markets Association. For example, the benchmarks used in these products may be subject to conflicts of interest, at risk of being manipulated and not be transparent enough, the study said. “Conflicts […]
It’s no surprise that investors can’t rely on past performance when picking a manager for tomorrow, but it remains a key driver for many investment decisions, according to a new paper by Mercer. “Despite the ever-present health warning that ‘past performance is no guide to future performance,’ there are plenty of theories in behavioural finance […]
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec has created a fund worth $250 million dedicated to artificial intelligence and Quebec businesses with a proven track record in AI. The fund’s aim is to increase growth in businesses offering products based on AI and to accelerate the commercialization of these solutions. “Since Montreal is emerging as a […]
Buy-in and buyout annuity sales hit their highest level in Canadian history in 2018, reaching $4.5 billion, an increase of $800 million over 2017, according to data from Eckler Ltd. The purchases represent a 20 per cent increase in the volume of group annuities bought by Canadian pension plans, year over year. Buy-in annuities, which made up more than […]