Jennifer Coulson has been engaged in responsible investing and environmental, social and governance factors for two decades and remembers a time when it was difficult to get access to chief executive officers to discuss her concerns. Not anymore. Today, senior leaders have a much better understanding of the importance of ESG factors and actively seek […]
As interest rates return to pre-pandemic levels, fixed income is returning to its role as an equities hedge, according to a webinar on Wednesday hosted by AllianceBernstein Canada Inc. “As we see rates rise back to where they were at the end of 2019, there’s gas in the tank for fixed income to play that […]
Imperial Oil Ltd. is recommending investors attending its annual meeting in May vote against a shareholder resolution that it adopt a corporate-wide target to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. The motion, made by Aequo Shareholder Engagement Services on behalf of Quebec group retirement system Bâtirente, argues that Imperial’s current 2023 emissions-reduction target is a step in […]
The British Columbia Investment Management Corp. is committing to five-year climate-related targets for its public markets program. The pension fund is targeting a cumulative $5-billion investment in sustainability bonds and a 30 per cent reduction of carbon exposure in its global public equities portfolio by 2025, according to a press release, which noted the targets […]
The Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan is committing to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The commitment includes the establishment of concrete targets for portfolio emissions as well as increased investments in climate solutions, according to a press release, which noted the Ontario Teachers’ will also ensure portfolio companies manage and report their emissions annually. […]
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is investing in its first transportation project with the purchase of a 67-kilometre highway in India. The asset will be the Caisse’s first acquisition through its new investment trust dedicated to road infrastructure in India, noted a press release. Project operations started in December 2011, with an […]
An environmental coalition is appealing to Ontario teachers to pressure their pension fund to divest from companies that develop or transport fossil fuel products. In a four-minute YouTube video, a group of students from across Ontario read a letter to their teachers, asking them to push the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan to stop investing their […]
The Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan’s struggles when the dot-com bubble burst planted the seeds for the liability-driven investing strategy it’s so well known for today. At the time, the plan had a traditional 60/40 portfolio of equities and bonds, and saw its significant funding surplus quickly turn into a deficit as equities took a […]
Central banks slowing their quantitative easing policies and economic improvements off the back of wide-scale vaccination efforts should both provide bond yields with a modest boost in 2021. But that won’t give defined benefit pension plan sponsors much relief. “You hear the phrase ‘low for long’ and I would agree we’re in an extended period […]
Two experienced pension professionals weigh in on the longstanding debate regarding whether pension plans should be investing actively or passively. Blair Richards, chief investment officer at the Halifax Port ILA/HEA pension plan To see why passive investing should be a part of every portfolio — particularly in today’s environment — first consider its traditional benefits: […]