The Association of Canadian Pension Management is urging the federal government to reverse its position on the cessation of real return bonds and open a stakeholder consultation on the matter. In an open letter, the ACPM said the real return bonds are an important tool in building a balanced portfolio that manages inflation risk. In […]
While the University of British Columbia’s staff pension plan already boasts a sizable investment in alternative credit, it still has room for more. “Overall, we have a favourable outlook for alternative credit and intend to continue growing our exposure in 2023,” says Josh Kruse, associate director at UBC Investment Management. “Rising policy interest rates and […]
The median solvency ratio of defined benefit pension plans in Canada increased during the third quarter of 2023, according to separate reports from Mercer and Aon. Mercer’s report showed median solvency ratio rose from 119 per cent at June 30 to 125 per cent at Sept. 30, according to Mercer’s latest pension health pulse. The report, […]
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 […]
In 2022, the typical defined benefit pension plan achieved an investment return of roughly negative 12 per cent. However, due to dramatic increases in bond yields and a subsequent decrease in pension liabilities, many pension plans ended 2022 with the same — or better — solvency funded level that they had at the beginning of […]
The median solvency ratio of Ontario defined benefit pension plans rose during the first quarter of 2023, from 112 per cent at the beginning of the year to 115 per cent at the end of March, according to the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario’s latest pension solvency report. During the quarter, pension fund investment returns averaged […]
Canadian defined benefit pension plans generated a median return of 4.23 per cent for the first quarter of 2023, according to the BNY Mellon Canadian asset strategy view universe. Among traditional asset classes, global equities posted the strongest performance, with a quarterly median return of 7.32 per cent, while Canadian fixed income returns were the […]
The funded position of a typical Canadian defined benefit pension plan improved on a solvency and accounting basis in March, according to a new report by Telus Health. During the month, the solvency of the typical Canadian DB plan rose by 0.4 per cent, finishing at 101.7 per cent of its value at the start […]
The median solvency ratio of Canadian defined benefit pension plans rose during the first quarter of 2023, from 113 per cent at the beginning of the year to 116 per cent at the end of March, according to Mercer’s latest pension health pulse. The measure, which tracks the median solvency ratio of the DB plans […]
Higher long-term bond yields driven by rising interest rates are lowering the cost of annuity purchases for defined benefit pension plans, says Mary Kate Archibald, a principal at Eckler Ltd. Since January, the cost of an annuity purchase has decreased by between 10 and 15 per cent, as long-term bond yields increased from 1.7 to […]