Last year was a tumultuous one, with economies ravaged by successive waves of coronavirus pandemic-related stresses and closures. Despite the negative impact these forces had on the economy, the stock market continued to rebound from the March 2020 correction and performed well. And in the face of higher volatility, U.S. stock exchanges were the highest […]
The average Canadian defined benefit pension plan saw its funding position deteriorate slightly on both a solvency and accounting basis in November, according to a new report by LifeWorks Inc. According to the report, the index covering the estimated average DB plan saw its solvency ratio dip, from 111.5 per cent to 110.8 per cent. […]
The average Canadian defined benefit pension plan saw improvements on a solvency and accountancy basis in October, according to LifeWorks Inc.’s monthly report. Its monthly report on DB pension indices found the average plan saw its solvency index rise to 111.5 per cent, up from 108.8 per cent at the end of September and a […]
Canadian pension plans saw returns averaging about 0.6 per cent in the third quarter of 2021, according to a new report by Northern Trust Canada. Despite the sluggish growth in the quarter, gains from the first half of the year have buoyed most Canadian pension plans. The report found the median plan had seen the […]
Bâtirente is introducing a new strategy that seeks to optimize its fixed income, global equity and environmentally responsible investment allocations. The Montreal-based pension’s new fund optimization plan specifically addresses the organization’s main priorities. By implementing the new plan, it will seek to improve its funds’ diversity in fixed income and global equities and focus on […]
Canadian defined benefit pension plans returned 4.4 per cent in the second quarter of 2021, according to RBC Investor & Treasury Services’ latest all-plan universe. The report found average Canadian DB pension plan returns grew by 0.9 percentage points over the previous quarter, from 3.5 per cent to 4.4 per cent. It also noted the […]
As global equities overcame inflationary fears and continued an upward trend, Canadian pension plan investment returns increased during the second quarter of 2021, with the median plan returning 4.1 per cent, according to Northern Trust Canada’s pension universe. “The course of the pandemic has certainly taught us attributes about strength and adaptation, fundamentals we can […]
Despite this year’s extreme volatility, the past ten years have been an extraordinary time to be an equity investor. This can be seen by looking at the so-called equity risk premium, which is simply the difference between returns on global stock markets and risk-free assets, such as U.S. dollar bank deposits. Over the very long […]
The novel coronavirus pandemic has been an enormous human tragedy and its ultimate impact on the global economy remains impossible to predict. For many companies, the damage is likely to be severe, perhaps permanent, and this has been justifiably reflected in depressed share prices. But a key lesson from previous crashes is that periods of […]
Defined benefit pensions maintain positive growth at the start of 2017.