Pension Pulse

 Layan Odeh of Bloomberg reports  Canada’s top pension earns 7.5% in its best quarter in over a decade: Canada Pension Plan Investment Board earned 7.5% in its first fiscal quarter, fueling its best performance since 2015 with investments in stocks and energy.  Net assets rose to C$863.6 billion ($622.5 billion) in the period ended June 30, up about 9% from the previous quarter. “Our investment portfolio remains well positioned to benefit from favorable public equity market performance, with meaningful contributions across our globally diversified portfolio,”  Chief Executive Officer John Graham said in a statement Friday. Public equity holdings were buoyed by AI-related sectors and “resilient” corporate earnings. Investments in real assets — particularly energy — as well as a stronger US dollar further boosted returns, according to the statement.  Canada’s largest pension plan made 14 credit investments during the quarter, the largest being $1 billion in Bla...

Mathieu Dion of Bloomberg reports  La Caisse posts 5% first-half return as stocks rally, private equity slumps: Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec, Canada’s second-largest pension manager, fell short of its benchmark in the first half of the year as losses on private equity holdings pulled down the overall return.  Net assets rose to $552 billion for the Montreal-based firm, which handles pension money and other capital on behalf of the Quebec government. Its average return was 5.1 per cent over the past six months, below the 7.5 per cent for its tracking index, in an environment marked by geopolitical tension in the Middle East and enthusiasm for artificial intelligence investments. Over a 10-year period, La Caisse has returned 7.5 per cent a year, nearly matching its benchmark. Chief executive Charles Emond said the conflict in Iran, its impact on inflation and interest rates, and the sustainability of the AI investment cycle are sources of uncertainty for the s...

Paul Vieira of the Wall Street Journal reports  Blackstone and La Caisse will buy 25% of Air Canada's Aeroplan loyalty program: Asset manager Blackstone and Quebec's La Caisse pension fund have agreed to acquire a 25% stake in Air Canada's loyalty-points program for nearly US$2 billion, which the airline said would help reduce debt and take steps toward obtaining an investment-grade rating. Blackstone, meanwhile, said the deal is a sign of the asset manager's confidence in Canada as a place to do business. Montreal-based Air Canada, the nation's largest airline, said the proceeds would help repay an upcoming billion-dollar bond maturity and reduce debt. Air Canada said the transaction values its Aeroplan points program at 10 billion Canadian dollars (US$7.2 billion). Blackstone and La Caisse are leading a consortium that also includes two other Canadian pension plans: PSP Investment and the British Columbia Investment Management Corporation. M...