Pension Pulse

A couple of days ago, OPTrust put out a press release, OPTrust Climate-Savvy Project Delivers New Insights for Pension Fund : OPTrust today released the results of its climate-savvy asset liability management/strategic asset allocation (ALM/SAA) project in partnership with Ortec Finance. The project marks another important step for OPTrust’s Climate Change Action Plan to ensure the portfolio remains resilient and agile in meeting the challenges of climate change. The ALM/SAA project is one of the first efforts of its kind to integrate quantified physical and transition risks and opportunities associated with climate change into traditional multi-horizon, real-world scenario sets that drive strategic investment decision-making. James C. Davis, Chief Investment Officer of OPTrust said, “Taking action on climate change and considering the financial implications is in the best interests of our members at OPTrust. In integrating climate risk into our portfolio construction framew...

Bert Clark, the president and CEO of the Investment Management Corporation of Ontario ( IMCO ), wrote a comment for the Globe and Mail, 'Canadian model' for approaching public pensions must evolve : For the past 25 years, many public pension funds in Canada have followed what’s globally referred to as the “Canadian model." This approach focused on independent and professional governance, investing in private assets, active management of public equities and internalization of investment activities to avoid high external management fees. By and large, the Canadian model has generated strong results. It put Canadian pensions on the global investing map. However, significant changes in capital markets are driving a need to evolve the Canadian model. As well, fund managers can’t ignore the success of other institutional asset management models that have emerged outside of Canada. Here’s why : First, successfully investing in private assets has become more difficult . W...

Benefits Canada reports, Pension plans just one component in transition to lower carbon economy, says PIAC : While Canada’s public and private pension plans are a vital player in the transition to a lower carbon economy, they’re only one component, with other financial market participants, such as banks, insurers and asset managers, must also play a role, according to the Pension Investment Association of Canada. In a letter commenting on a report by an expert panel on sustainable finance , the association agreed financial market participants should pay attention to the potential impact of government policy. As far as carbon emissions, the PIAC also noted it generally agrees with the measures put in place by governments to mitigate and reduce the negative impacts of climate change, which includes efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. These actions can include regulatory action, as well as more general guidance and incentives to influence capital allocation that would bols...

Benefits Canada reports, OMERS posts 2.3% return for 2018 : The Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System posted a 2.3 per cent return for 2018, pulling in $2.2 billion. In 2017, the fund saw a return of 11.5 per cent for the year and boosted its funded status to 94 per cent. For 2018, the funded status saw further gains, landing at 96 per cent . “The 2018 improvement in our funded status primarily reflects our five-year net investment return of 8.1 per cent,” said Jonathan Simmons, chief financial officer of the OMERS, in a press release. During 2018, the fund deployed $10 billion toward new private investments. “A return of 10.7 per cent from private investments and positive returns on our credit portfolio buffered the impact of public markets in a year when all major indices were lower compared to where they were at the beginning of the year,” said Michael Latimer, chief executive officer of the OMERS . The fund also opened a new investment office in Singapore last ...

Fred Imbert and Ryan Browne of CNBC report, Dow rises more than 180 points to retake 26,000, notches 9-week winning streak : Stocks rose on Friday as another round of trade talks between the U.S. and China wrapped up with investors increasingly more hopeful a deal will be struck. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 181.18 points to 26,031.81 as Intel outperformed. The 30-stock index also broke above 26,000 for the first time since early November and posted its ninth consecutive weekly gain, its longest streak since May 1995 . The Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.9 percent to 7,527.54 as shares of Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Alphabet all closed higher. The tech-heavy Nasdaq also notched its ninth straight weekly gain, its longest streak since May 2009. The small-caps Russell 2000 gained 0.9 percent to close at 1,590.06 and recorded its longest weekly winning streak since 1996.The S&P 500 climbed 0.6 percent to 2,792.67, led by gains in the tech sector. Stocks have bee...

CTV News Montreal reports, Caisse de Depot grew 4.2% in 2018, bought more shares in SNC-Lavalin : The Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec had a 4.2 per cent return on investment for the 2018 fiscal year, the lowest rate of return since 2011 – but higher and Quebec's baseline index of 2.4 percent. 2018 was a difficult year, said Michael Sabia, president and CEO of the Caisse, adding that global equity markets had dropped for the first time in many years. “We’re focusing on high-quality assets in infrastructure, in real estate, in private equity in our public equity investments -- always this emphasis on quality,” he said . Since 2011, the Caisse has changed its investment strategy dramatically, focusing more on international investments and moving away from traditional stocks and bonds . The Caisse's three main asset classes -- equities, fixed income, and real estate/infrastructure -- showed positive returns and overall the Caisse's net worth went up $12 bil...