By Rob Koslowski Source: Pensions & Investments The aggregate funding ratio of Canadian pension plans rose to 94.8% as of March 30 from 89.4% three months earlier, according to a survey from Aon. The overall funding deficit was about $21 billion. Overall pension assets lost about 2.3% in value over the quarter ended March 30 due to negative returns on fixed income that were partially offset by strong equity gains, according to a news release Wednesday announcing the survey. [...]

By Steve Randall Source: Wealth Professional Good news for Canada’s retirement savers, pension funds are continuing to improve their financial health in the first three months of 2021. The aggregate funded ratio for Canadian defined benefit pension plans in the S&P/TSX Composite Index increased from 89.4% to 94.8% in the first quarter according to the Aon Pension Risk Tracker. The strong performance of Canadian stocks helped bolster the position of pension funds, partially offsetting negative returns on fixed income assets, [...]

Canada’s pension system was ranked first overall among 15 countries in the Global Pension Transparency Benchmark. It ranked Canadian funds first in governance, citing the “global reputation for superior performance and governance excellence” of Canada’s five largest funds, namely the British Columbia Investment Management Corp., the Caisse de depot et placement du Québec, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board. Of these, the benchmark highlighted the best practices [...]