Pension Pulse

Sean Conlon and Pia Sinh of CNBC report the Dow closes more than 500 points lower after hot inflation report, mounting concerns about AI impact: Stocks dropped on Friday after the latest producer price index data came in much hotter than expected, adding sticky inflation to a list of concerns that has caused market turbulence this month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 521.28 points, or 1.05%, to close at 48,977.92. The S&P 500 closed down 0.43% at 6,878.88, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.92% to settle at 22,668.21. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished in the red for February amid growing fears about the impact of artificial intelligence on specific industries and the overall economy. Those fears were exacerbated after Jack Dorsey’s fintech company Block said it’s laying off more than 4,000 employees — nearly half of its workforce. Stocks in the financial sector and other areas of the market tied to the economic cycle pulled back Friday. Stocks lin...

Sophie Baker of Pensions & Investments reports liquidity focus pays off for Ontario Teachers’ as dual CIOs mark two-year milestone: It’s been two years since the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan restructured its leadership team, appointing two people to oversee investments — and despite some major changes and challenges in global markets, the so-called dual CIOs haven’t made any knee-jerk reactions.  Rather, the focus for the two has largely been creating liquidity in the C$269.6 billion ($197 billion as of June 30) portfolio.  "We have been quite proactive in terms of generating liquidity on the private asset side, and seen some good success there, particularly in the market," Stephen McLennan CIO-asset allocation, said in an interview. "We're in position now where we would like to deploy into attractive opportunities and continually assess what the right balance is between passive and active to generate active returns."  "We also want to spend a lot...

Nicolas Van Praet of the Globe and Mail reports Caisse posts 9.3% return in 2025 on gains from stock holdings: Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec tallied an 9.3-per-cent return last year as gains from stock holdings offset a neutral performance by real estate investments in an environment marked by ongoing trade strife, global conflict and the expansion of artificial intelligence across society. Net assets stood at $517-billion at the end of 2025, up from $473-billion the year before, the Montreal-based pension fund manager said in a statement Wednesday. The annualized return over five years was 6.5 per cent. “It’s really a new world order out there,” Caisse Chief Executive Charles Emond said in an interview, noting the power of AI-related themes over stock markets among other major shifts taking place. Investment diversification remains the key to delivering stable returns as the uncertainty persists, he said. “The main risk we’re dealing with – and I would have...