North Carolina Retirement Systems, Raleigh, reported a 2.21% return for the fiscal year ended June 30, 85 basis points below the pension fund's one-year benchmark.
State Treasurer Janet Cowell, the sole trustee for the $74.5 billion pension fund, noted in a statement that 11.6% gains in the fixed-income portfolio helped to mitigate losses in the global equity portfolio, which returned -5.98% over the fiscal year.
“Equity markets across the globe have suffered this quarter from the continuing instability in the eurozone and a slowdown in China,” Ms. Cowell said in the statement. “At the same time, movement to lower risk investments such as fixed income and real estate helped buffer those losses.”
Gains also came from real estate, which returned 7.88% for the fiscal year, and an alternatives portfolio of mostly private equity, which returned 5.39%. The credit portfolio returned 0.37%.
The current asset allocation is 43% equities, 37% fixed income, 7.8% real estate, 5.2% alternatives, 4% credit and 3% inflation.
