Institutional investors seeking to reduce their portfolios’ carbon footprint should pay more attention to scope 3 emissions, says Priti Skokeen, head of environmental, social and governance research and engagement at TD Asset Management Inc. “Typically, when investors engage issuers on climate change, the focus tends to be on industries traditionally understood as high emitting, for […]
The best ship captains don’t put too much faith in weather forecasts — or those who do tend to see their vessels flounder. Perhaps that’s why the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. has a skipper, Duncan Burrill, at the helm of its pension plan. Even when he’s away from his much-loved sailboat on the banks of the […]
In his keynote address at the 2021 Global Investment Conference, Karthik Ramanna, professor of business and public policy at the University of Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government, described the practice of greenwashing in corporate environmental, social and governance reports as “rampant.” “I’m going to give you some fairly specific tactical tools to tell the signal […]
For all its dangers, there’s still considerable opportunity to be found in the Chinese investment space. At the 2021 Global Investment Conference, Anh Lu, portfolio manager for the Asia ex-Japan equity strategy at T. Rowe Price, said the trick to capitalizing on the opportunities in the world’s most populous country is to consider the long-term […]
This year has been a difficult one for emerging market currencies, but there are signs that 2022 will give investors reason to be optimistic. “For the first time in 20 years, U.S. growth is outperforming EM growth,” said Fernando Grisales, senior emerging market portfolio manager at Schroders, during his presentation at the 2021 Global Investment […]
Some four decades ago, parliamentarians voted to restrict pension funds’ ability to borrow money without losing their tax-exempt status, though their reasoning has been lost to time. “These rules have been around forever, but . . . their intended purpose [remains obscure],” said Matias Milet, a partner at Osler, Hoskin and Harcourt LLP, during a […]
As places of economic activity, flood plains have their advantages — just ask the ancient Mesopotamians or the staff of the Winnipeg-based Teachers’ Retirement Allowance Fund. “Those of you who have been to our offices will know we’re right at the intersection of the Red and Assiniboine rivers. We are right in the flood plain […]
The recent emphasis on environmental, social and governance issues among pension investors will continue to dominate industry conversations in the future, according to a panel discussion with three high-profile figures in Canada’s investment sector during the 2021 Global Investment Conference. “If I could rename ESG, it would be GES,” said Alain Malaket, chief executive officer […]
The end of Canada’s quantitative easing strategy and higher than expected interest rates will be beneficial to Canadian defined benefit pension plans, according to Sebastien Betermier, an associate professor of finance at McGill University’s Desautels Faculty of Management. On Wednesday, Tiff Macklem, governor of the Bank of Canada, announced plans to end its quantitative easing policy and […]
A number of Canadian institutional investors are urging corporations to begin addressing climate change risks and opportunities in order to receive their investment dollars. Some 36 institutional investors, including Bâtirente, the British Columbia Investment Management Corp., the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, the Investment Management Corp. of Ontario, the Ontario Pension Board and the […]