The funded ratio of the 100 largest U.S. corporate defined benefit pension plans is on the rise, jumping from 108.8 per cent at the end of September to 112.8 per cent at the end of October, according to a new report by consulting firm Milliman Inc. During the month, the funded status surplus increased to […]
The Canadian Institute of Actuaries is supporting several of the Alberta government’s proposed legislative and policy updates for private sector pension laws, including the move towards a going-concern plus regime for defined benefit plans and the introduction of automatic features in defined contribution plans. In its response to the consultation draft, the CIA cited the benefits […]
An article on Telus Communications Inc.’s win in Benefits Canada‘s 2022 Workplace Benefits Awards was the most-read story on BenefitsCanada.com over the last week. Here are the five most popular news stories of the week: 1. Telus wins award for supporting employees’ holistic well-being 2. Survey finds nearly all young employees globally experiencing burnout 3. Half of employees say employer hasn’t communicated […]
Canadian defined benefit pension plans saw a median return of 0.27 per cent for the third quarter of 2022 amid a challenging economic environment, according to the BNY Mellon Canadian master trust universe. The universe, which is designed to provide peer comparisons by plan type and size, comprises 80 Canadian corporate public and university pension […]
From an economic perspective, the last year has been quite tumultuous. As central banks began raising rates to tame inflation, the loose monetary environment with policy rates held at historic lows evolved to a rapidly tightening one. In October 2021, the overnight rate was 0.25 per cent and the 10-year Canadian bond yield was 1.6 […]
Canadian pension plan investments saw very modest gains in the third quarter of 2022 as both stock and bond markets responded favourably to the pace of interest rate hikes around the globe, according to a new report by Northern Trust Canada. The report, which tracks the performance of Canadian defined benefit plans, found the median […]
The vast majority (95 per cent) of defined benefit pension plan sponsors say higher inflation is impacting their decision to de-risk, with half (50 per cent) saying it’s very impactful, according to a new survey by MetLife Inc. The survey, which polled more than 250 DB pension plan sponsors with at least $100 million or more […]
While defined contribution pension plans currently outnumber defined benefit pension plans, this wasn’t always the case, recalls Bita Jenab, a principal at RetirementWorks Services Inc. DC plans began to gain popularity in the mid-1980s, due to a combination of legislative and economic changes, she adds. “This period marks the introduction of pension accounting rules under […]
As a fresh-faced elementary school student in 1977, Aaron Bennett wasn’t quite in the target demographic for the freshly launched Benefits Canada magazine. Still, Bennett — now the chief investment officer at Ontario’s University Pension Plan — has a pretty firm grasp on the concerns that would have occupied the minds of his predecessors as […]
In 2022, normal was supposed to make a comeback — it didn’t. Just as supply chains began to stabilize, war broke out in Europe, China invaded Taiwan’s waters, inflation skyrocketed and central banks began hiking interest rates. While investments in renewable energy infrastructure reached new highs, economies that had been moving away from fossil fuels […]