In the search for market-beating returns, institutional investors are facing a shifting geopolitical landscape, ongoing questions about monetary policy and the impact of climate change. At the 2024 Investment Innovation Conference on Nov. 12-14 in Vancouver, B.C., leading academics and industry figures reckoned with the aftermath of the highly anticipated U.S. presidential election and provided […]
Quantitative strategies are proving to be a powerful tool for diversification in fixed income portfolios, offering portfolio managers access to new sources of alpha while enabling efficient decision-making, according to Patrick Duplessis, fixed income portfolio manager at Trans-Canada Capital Inc. Speaking at the Canadian Investment Review’s 2024 Investment Innovation Conference, he described quantitative strategies as rules-based, […]
When investment managers combine the inside view with the outside view, they make better decisions when it comes to choosing equities, according to Peter Stournaras, head of the integrated equity group at T. Rowe Price Group Inc., during the Canadian Investment Review’s 2024 Investment Innovation Conference. “The combination of the two is better than either individually,” he […]
Defined benefit pension plan sponsors can improve their performance and risk assessment by closely evaluating the connection between assets and liabilities, said Jason Malinowski, chief investment officer at the Seattle City Employees’ Retirement System, during the Canadian Investment Review’s 2024 Investment Innovation Conference. This is “because the portfolio return that changes your asset value is […]
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 median solvency ratio of Canadian defined benefit pension plans increased to 125 per cent by the end of the fourth quarter of 2024, up from 122 per cent as at Sept. 30, 2024, according to a new report by Mercer. The report, which tracks roughly 450 plans in Mercer’s database, found nearly nine in […]
Variable payment life annuities and the impact of gender identity on actuarial standards are among the issues the Canadian Institute of Actuaries is monitoring in 2025, says Simon Nelson, a principal at Eckler Ltd. and chair of the CIA’s pension practice committee. A CIA task force on VPLAs will present its findings early this year, […]
With the start of a new year, there are several developments and trends that will likely impact Canadian pension plan sponsors in 2025. Implementation of regulatory guidelines In September 2024, the Canadian Association of Pension Supervisory Authorities published a new guideline for risk management for plan administrators and an update to their guideline for capital […]
Expected economic headwinds in Canada won’t prevent strong results from equities and fixed income in 2025, according to a new report by the Royal Bank of Canada. Canadian equities will be supported by strong earnings growth expectations and a valuation that isn’t “terribly extended,” compared to the U.S. equity market, said the report. For its […]