After a year of steady performance, fixed income markets could kick off 2026 with concerns from a macroeconomic standpoint, says Steve Locke, chief investment officer of fixed income and multi-asset strategies at Mackenzie Investments. “We’re seeing some fiscal and GDP tailwinds that are going to start to form fairly early in the new year. In […]
An increase in market volatility is pushing asset owners to build a nimble portfolio, according to Olga Bezrokov, senior portfolio manager at Russell Investments, during a session at the Canadian Investment Review’s 2025 Risk Management Conference. A combination of geopolitical risks and vague policy signals from central banks is causing investors to reexamine how they […]
The average Canadian pension plan’s funded ratio reached 120 per cent as of March 31, 2023, up one per cent over the quarter, while the average going-concern solvency ratio was 111 per cent, up four per cent, according to a new report by Normandin Beaudry. The report attributed these increases to the strong performance of financial […]
The world is entering an unpredictable period defined by increasing fiscal policy use, decreasing global trade and higher inflation and interest rates, according to a new research paper by the Investment Management Corp. of Ontario. “At IMCO, we believe that these global trends are leading us towards a new era of investing, one where it […]
The uncertainty about the direction interest rates will move in 2023 means defined benefit pension plan sponsors should be reconsidering their asset allocation strategies, says Ben Ukonga, principal at Mercer. “I don’t think anybody knows when, or if, interest rates will come down. If [inflation] comes down, the Bank of Canada’s likely to stop increasing […]
Despite concerns about global economic headwinds, the Bank of Canada’s successful efforts to curb inflation is capturing the attention of institutional investors, says Kathrin Forrest, a Toronto-based equity investment specialist at Capital Group Inc. “It’s surprised market participants,” says Forrest, referring to the central bank’s Oct. 26 decision to increase interest rates for the sixth […]
The use of leverage by U.K. defined benefit pension plans with liability-driven investment strategies left them vulnerable to a sharp rise in bond yields in September, says Erwan Pirou, Canada chief investment officer of wealth solutions at Aon. “Many plans in the U.K. are using leverage in their LDI strategies . . . to reduce […]
The Bank of England’s decision to intervene in the long-dated government bond market protected defined benefit pension plans with liability-driven investment strategies, according to a central bank official. “In practice, the move in [long-term bond] yields last week threatened to exceed the size of the cushion for many LDI funds, requiring them to either sell […]
Efforts by central banks to reduce inflation could spark a global recession, according to a new report from the World Bank. “If the degree of global monetary policy tightening currently anticipated by markets is not enough to lower inflation to targets, experience from past global recessions suggests that the requisite additional tightening could give rise […]
Investors should expect the unexpected in 2022, according to George Athanassakos, professor of finance and the Ben Graham chair in value investing at Western University’s Ivey School of Business. “2022 is likely to be filled with hidden hazards, both known unknowns and unknown unknowns,” he wrote in an email to the Canadian Investment Review. This […]