Despite the low-yield environment, fixed income continues to play an important role for institutional investors looking to make their portfolios work harder in a risk-controlled fashion, said Jeffrey Moore, a portfolio manager at Fidelity Investments Inc., during a session at the Canadian Investment Review’s 2021 Global Investment Conference. “For the bond market to hurt, there needs […]
While 72 per cent of institutional investors are currently integrating environmental, social and governance factors into their investment strategies, 29 per cent are placing greater emphasis on ESG considerations as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new survey by RBC Global Asset Management. The survey, which polled 800 global institutional investors, found […]
When the coronavirus pandemic shook up the investment landscape last spring, Canadian pension funds were also jostled by the shock wave, with the Alberta Investment Management Corp. and the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System among the hardest hit. And while the pandemic was an unprecedented event, such losses have raised the issue of whether Canadian pension […]
From the rise of cryptocurrency DogeCoin and non-fungible tokens to Reddit members beating hedge fund managers at their own game, 2021 has been an eventful year in the world of retail investing. And while institutional investors might not be betting big on Gamestop Corp. or Elon Musk’s latest cryptocurrency tweet, some have inched closer to […]
As institutional investors seek portfolio diversification and the insurance industry seeks additional capacity amid global growth, investment strategies incorporating insurance-linked securities are providing a solution for both parties. Insurance-linked securities allow insurers to transfer some of their risk to investors. For example, in the case of catastrophe bonds, the issuer pays a coupon to an […]
Pension plans in Canada now factor environmental, social and governance monitoring in their investment process, and in the absence of national guidance, plan managers are using various tools and methods to analyze ESG risk, noted panelists of a roundtable recently hosted by The Association of Canadian Pension Management. “Considering ESG requires a balance of the investment […]
Following an unprecedented 2020, Canada’s plan sponsors and pension plans are incorporating the lessons of the last year as they prepare for a new decade, according to a recent webinar hosted by Mercer Canada. The coming years will be marked by developments including increased geopolitical tensions and the lingering economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic, […]
While institutional investors are facing an “unquestionably brighter” economic outlook in 2021, challenges such as fluctuations in the U.S. and Canadian dollars still lie ahead, says Karl Schamotta, chief market strategist at Cambridge Global Payments. In terms of the global growth landscape, he says crowded trades have been fuelled across several asset classes based on an […]
While institutional investors are facing headwinds from unexpected inflation and geopolitical realignment in 2021, the coming year will also see rebounds for corporate earnings and equities, according to two new research papers from Mercer. “Non-stop social and technological change has increased at a rate as exciting as it’s bewildering and COVID-19 has resulted in an […]
While there’s still a period of uncertainty ahead, the deployment of coronavirus vaccines is already having a positive effect on markets, according to a webinar hosted by FTSE Russell on Wednesday. In November, the global and U.S. equities markets saw double-digit returns following vaccine announcements by pharmaceutical firms Pfizer Inc., Moderna Inc. and AstraZeneca, said […]