LifeWorks (TSX: LWRK) has released the results of its Performance Universe of Pension Managers’ Pooled Funds for the third quarter of 2021.

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According to the report, in the third quarter of 2021, diversified pooled fund managers posted a median return of 0.7 per cent before management fees and 8.0 per cent since the beginning of the year.

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“The stock market showed slower growth in the third quarter after a strong start to the year, and the MSCI World Index delivered a 2.3 per cent return. The Canadian Equity S&P/TSX Composite Index posted a return of 0.2 per cent in the third quarter and the U.S. stocks S&P 500 Index registered a return of 0.6 per cent (in U.S. dollars) and 3.4 per cent in Canadian dollars. The Emerging Markets Index posted a return of negative 5.9 per cent (in Canadian dollars). During the third quarter of 2021, the Canadian bond market posted a return of negative 0.5 per cent,” said Jean Bergeron, partner for the investment and risk consulting team at LifeWorks.

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“The financial position of pension funds has improved since the start of the year. We estimate that the solvency ratio of an average pension fund increased by around 8.8 per cent in the first three quarters of the year,” added Bergeron.

During the third quarter of 2021, diversified pooled fund managers obtained, on average, returns that exceeded that of the benchmark portfolio. The median return was 0.7 per cent, which was 0.8 per cent higher than for the benchmark portfolio used by many pension funds (with an allocation of 55 per cent in equity and 45 per cent in fixed income).

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