There is no question that is has been a tough year for the world’s stock markets and, naturally, this has had an impact on how the York University Pension Fund. The fund ended ‘down’ in the third quarter this year, but above the benchmark return.
Find out about more about how the York University Pension Plan is faring by reading the following report….
After a slight recovery in August, the global stock markets continued to retreat during the third quarter of 2002, with most markets ending the quarter at their lows for the year. Increasing geopolitical uncertainty, a potential escalation of conflicts with Iraq, corporate earnings disappointments, and continued attention on corporate accounting fraud, all led to heightened risk aversion and contributed to the decline in the markets. The bond markets, however, continued to put in a strong performance on the back of the weak equity markets.
The York University Pension Fund ended the third quarter with a YTD return of –8.7 per cent. This is a net return, i.e. after fees and expenses have been deducted. This is ahead of the benchmark return of –10.8 per cent YTD.
The fund has a well diversified investment policy of 40 per cent Canadian bonds, 30 per cent Canadian equity, 12 per cent US equity, 18 per cent non-North American equity, and 0 per cent cash.
Note: The Fund benchmark is a composite of the market indices calculated using the same proportions as the investment policy.
The fund, benchmark, and various capital market returns for the period ending Sept. 30, 2002 are summarized in a table at the following York Web address: http://www.yorku.ca/hr/documents/Q302QuarterlyUpdate.pdf.