The average Canadian defined benefit pension plan posted returns of 0.8 per cent in the second quarter of 2023, according to RBC Investor and Treasury Services’ universe. Foreign equities emerged as the top performing asset class, boasting a median return of 2.9 per cent. In comparison, the MSCI world index returned 4.5 per cent, primarily […]
Manitoba’s Teachers’ Retirement Allowances Fund returned negative 0.42 per cent in 2022, exceeding its benchmark return of negative 5.04 per cent. “While we are pleased with these short-term results, our longer-term results are equally favourable,” said Jeff Norton, the TRAF’s president and chief executive officer, in its annual report. “Over the past 20 years to […]
Despite recent uptick in U.S. commercial office real estate landlords defaulting on their loans, the chances of the same trend moving north of the border is low, says Jim Clayton, professor and Timothy R. Price chair in real estate and infrastructure with the Schulich School of Business at York University. Since the onset of the […]
U.S. state and municipal pension funds are on track to miss investment targets and are unlikely to see meaningful improvements in their unfunded liabilities or funded ratios in 2023, according to a new report by the Equable Institute. The report, which analyzed trends in benefits, cash flows, contributions, funding and investments at 225 of the […]
The funded position of a typical defined benefit pension plan increased on both a solvency and accounting basis during the month of June, according to the latest pension index from Telus Health. In June, the solvency of the average DB plan rose to 103.2 per cent, up from 101.4 per cent during the month of […]
As Thames Water Utilities Ltd. came under fire this month for its financial mismanagement and poor environmental record, the debacle highlights institutional investors’ responsibilities around due diligence and risk management. “Thames Water should act as a kind of warning,” says Andrew Clare, a professor and chair in asset management at the City, University of London’s […]
The Bank of Canada raised interest rates again on Wednesday and released new projections that suggest it will take longer to get inflation back to two per cent. The central bank hiked its key interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point, bringing it to five per cent. Forecasters were widely anticipating the central […]
Canadian defined benefit pension plans’ median solvency ratio increased in the second quarter of 2023, according to a new report by Mercer. The report, which looked at the performance of more than 500 Canadian DB plans in its database, found a rise from 116 per cent to 119 per cent during the quarter. Meanwhile, a similar report […]
High inflation and interest rates are having a real impact on people’s finances, according to Benefits Canada‘s 2023 CAP Member Survey, which found 76 per cent of capital accumulation plan members say inflation is negatively impacting their financial situation, while 59 per cent say the same about interest rates. For many people, the day-to-day cost […]
Since 2016, millennials have made up a larger share of the working population than baby boomers — and today, one in three Canadians of working age is a millennial, according to Charmaine Alexander, senior advisor in disability management at Desjardins Insurance, speaking during Benefits Canada’s 2023 Benefits & Pension Summit in June. A recent survey […]