North Carolina Retirement Systems, Raleigh, returned 4.89% in the third quarter of 2013, with positive returns in all asset classes, confirmed spokesman Schorr Johnson.
The strongest returns for the quarter came from equities, which gained 9.19%; followed by the inflation-protection portfolio, 2.76%; alternatives, 2.39%; credit strategies, 2.31%; real estate, 2.29%; and fixed income, 0.56%.
The current asset allocation is 47.6% equities, 31.8% fixed income, 7.8% real estate, 4.6% credit strategies, 4.5% alternatives, 3.1% inflation, and 0.6% cash.
State Treasurer Janet Cowell, sole trustee of the $83.1 billion pension fund, said in a statement Wednesday that she is committed “to continuing to diversify the portfolio” to address challenges posed by low interest rates and slow economic growth.
The third-quarter results represent a 12-month return of 9.97%, ahead of an 8.29% benchmark.
For the fiscal year ended June 30, the pension fund returned 9.52%, ahead of its 7.25% assumed rate of return and 8.4% benchmark. Since then, the pension fund has gained $3.1 billion.