Even before the coronavirus began affecting capital markets, fixed income investors were becoming more risk averse, according to Invesco’s latest survey. Close to half (43 per cent) of investors surveyed in late 2019 said they felt the then economic cycle had a year or less left to run and were adapting their portfolios accordingly. In some cases, this change […]
Even amid the global chaos created by the coronavirus pandemic, China is too big an economy for institutional investors to ignore. A recent report by Greenwich Associates found the two main drivers for China allocations among institutional investors are diversification (54 per cent) and potential for alpha (31 per cent). But just as markets in Europe […]
Beaten down by the coronavirus outbreak, the world economy in 2020 will suffer its worst year since the Great Depression of the 1930s, the International Monetary Fund says in its latest forecast. The IMF said Tuesday that it expects the global economy to shrink three per cent this year — far worse than its 0.1 […]
Historically, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board’s credit functions were scattered across the organization. But in 2018, the pension fund consolidated its credit investments into one department to gain synergies. Before the merger, the CPPIB’s principal credit investment group was within the private investments team, its private real estate debt group was within the real […]
When it comes to emerging markets equities, it’s important to look for compounders that will create value over time, says Andrew Miller, chief investment officer for emerging markets equities at Mondrian Investment Partners Ltd. “Obviously, all of us that operate in the stock market and invest in the stock market, whether you’re a fund manager […]
Canadian defined benefit plans posted a median return of 13.6 per cent for 2019, according to Northern Trust Canada’s pension universe. North American equities led the way to double-digit returns for the year, with 1.9 per cent gains in the final quarter of the year, outpacing 1.6 per cent returns in the previous quarter. “Despite […]
In the past, Canadian investors may have seen emerging market indices as too heavy on materials and energy companies, which are also well-represented in North American indices and would over-expose them to those sectors. But in fact, technology and consumer themes are playing an increasing role in emerging markets, says Nicole Vettise, senior vice-president and institutional […]
Several factors are pointing to a possible rebound in emerging market stocks this year. Stocks in China and other developing economies notched solid gains in 2019, but lagged the blockbuster market returns delivered by publicly traded companies in the U.S. and other developed economies. The U.S.-China trade war and signs of slowing global economic growth […]
Canada’s defined benefit pension plans increased their solvency levels in 2019 and have equity markets to thank, according to Mercer. The Mercer pension health index, which represents the solvency of a hypothetical plan, increased to 112 per cent in the final quarter of the year, up from 105 per cent at the end of the […]
MSCI Inc. is awarding emerging market status to the MSCI Kuwait Indexes as the country’s equity market now meets the required criteria for reclassification. The reclassification will be part of the MSCI’s May 2020 semi-annual review. In late October, the Kuwait Capital Market Authority resolved to amend certain provisions of the executive bylaws and rules […]