Canadian defined benefit pension funds returned 3.6% in the third quarter, boosted by rising global equity markets, according to a quarterly survey by RBC Investor & Treasury Services.
In the second quarter, returns for the Canadian DB plans were relatively flat.
For the first nine months of 2013, the plans returned 7.9%.
Foreign equities moved higher for the fifth successive quarter, advancing 5.7%.
“Strength was widespread across all global regions with Europe leading the way,” said Scott MacDonald, head of pension segment development at RBC Investor & Treasury Services, in a news release.
Through the first three quarters of 2013, foreign equity was the top-performing asset class, up 21.1%. “Canadian dollar weakness against most major currencies helped boost returns by over 2.2% for the nine-month period,” Mr. MacDonald added.
Canadian stocks gained 6.9% in the third quarter and 10.2% for the nine months ended Sept. 30.
Bonds gained only 0.1% in the latest quarter and were down 1.7% for the first three quarters of the year.
RBC Investor & Treasury Services, the global custody unit of Royal Bank of Canada, surveys Canadian pension funds with a combined C$460 billion (US$440 billion) in assets.
