Pension fund reports 1% gain with US exposure weighing against stock and energy performance
Canada Pension Plan Investment Board’s (CPPIB) net assets rose to $731.7bn in the quarter ended June 30, up from $714.4bn, according to Bloomberg.
The 1 percent return was largely tempered by the weakening US dollar, which offset gains from equities and energy holdings.
Chief Executive Officer John Graham said in the statement, “Shifting trade dynamics and broader geopolitical uncertainty fueled renewed volatility in global markets during the first quarter of our fiscal year.”
As reported by Bloomberg, CPPIB pointed to a rebound in stock markets, energy assets, and strong results from its external manager program as performance drivers.
Still, these “gains were largely offset by the weakening of the US dollar relative to the Canadian dollar amid tariff-related uncertainty.”
Almost half of the portfolio was invested in the US as of March 31, with US dollar holdings representing 52 percent of its $552.4bn in foreign currency exposure.
The fund also made several notable investments in the quarter.
Bloomberg reported that CPPIB committed about $525m to macro-themed strategies and equity trades.
The fund also agreed to allocate $193m to a continuation fund managed by New Mountain Capital.
In addition, it invested $300m in debt issuance for Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup xAI to support a new data centre in Memphis, Tennessee.
Compared with peers, CPPIB’s results underscored the impact of currency headwinds.
Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan reported a 9.4 percent one-year return with assets above $266bn as of December 2024, while OMERS posted an 8.3 percent return on $138.2bn in assets.
Canadian defined benefit plans achieved a median 12.28 percent return in 2024, highlighting a stronger performance trend across the sector.
