The Nova Scotia Teachers’ Pension Plan is bracing for the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on its assets as it reported a 78.2 per cent funded status on a going-concern basis — up from 75.3 per cent at the end of 2018 — and a $1.497-million deficit in its 2019 annual results. “While the plan remains […]
Even amid the global chaos created by the coronavirus pandemic, China is too big an economy for institutional investors to ignore. A recent report by Greenwich Associates found the two main drivers for China allocations among institutional investors are diversification (54 per cent) and potential for alpha (31 per cent). But just as markets in Europe […]
Changes to Quebec’s pension legislation, including a move away from solvency funding requirements and the introduction of a cost-sharing model, against the backdrop of a low interest rate environment has had a major influence on the City of Montreal’s pension investment strategy. The City manages six plans under one pooled portfolio. The assets from all […]
As thoughts turn to decumulation, defined contribution plan sponsors have to look for different metrics to assess the variety of products on offer. During a session at Benefits Canada‘s 2020 DC Plan Summit in Montreal in February, Ed Studd, solutions manager of U.S. portfolio solutions at Schroders, called on plans to set a new consistent […]
The governor of the Bank of Canada says the central bank would have likely slashed its key interest rate in response to plunging oil prices, if that alone had been the only shock to the domestic economy. The cut might even have been to the current 0.25 per cent level it reached as the COVID-19 […]
When the coronavirus prompted a collapse in both economic activity and equity markets in March, it put an end to the longest bull market in history. Unprecedented steps by business and governments to slow transmission of the virus all but halted the global economy and adding insult to the viral injury, Russia and Saudi Arabia’s […]
Canada’s defined benefit plans have had a rough quarter. According to Aon’s median solvency ratio, DB plans fell to an average solvency of 89.1 per cent at the end of the first quarter, from 102.5 per cent at the end 2019. Mercer’s pension health index also dropped, from 112 per cent at the end of […]
The novel coronavirus has introduced unprecedented volatility to financial markets and is taking its toll on pension plans. We’ve seen sharp corrections in most equity markets. At its lowest point in the correction to date, the S&P 500 lost 34 per cent of its value, from its peak in February. The TSX, which has also […]
The Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan posted a net return of 10.4 per cent for 2019, bringing net assets to $207.4 billion. Its $20.2 billion in investment income represents an organizational best, said Jo Taylor, the pension fund’s president and chief executive officer, on a conference call Tuesday morning, outperforming the 2018 return of 2.5 per […]
The Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan posted a net return of 10.4 per cent for 2019, bringing net assets to $207.4 billion. Its $20.2 billion in investment income represents an organizational best, said Jo Taylor, the pension fund’s president and chief executive officer, on a conference call Tuesday morning, outperforming the 2018 return of 2.5 per cent after a volatile year in […]