Analysis

Proxies for risk capital are dipping, with long-term implications for financial market returns. The question is whether this will be a repeat of the Covid Crash or a repeat of the Tech Wreck.

Central bankers are hoping to subdue the inflation beast by the end of the calendar year. But it will likely be around for decades to come.

The world’s state-owned investors (SOI) have made progress in leaps and bounds on governance and sustainability. Locally, the Future Fund and NZ Super lead the way.

The performance test as it stands isn’t “fit for purpose” when it comes to choice products. And its bright line nature means tweaks are needed for MySuper products too.

Everything old is new again amidst an inflation/rate/war driven synchronised selloff. But lessons from the 80s are still applicable today.

While Australia’s super funds have gradually increased their allocation to alternative investments as public market return expectations fall, new research questions whether that’s the best approach.

The prophets of doom have seen their visions of a downturn realised, but the market is still tremendously expensive when compared with the bursting of previous bubbles.

While Australia’s biggest asset owners are “extremely sophisticated” on ESG, the shackles of the idiosyncratic Your Future Your Super (YFYS) benchmarks are still holding them back on portfolio decarbonisation.

While nearly 400 investment factors have been proposed in academic journals since 1960, new research calls into question their practicality – and their ability to earn anybody a performance fee.

While big super is all in on its newly-acquired nation building goals, a hint of caution about member outcomes pervaded last week’s AIST Superannuation Investment conference.

Nobody has a crystal ball, but you don’t need one to know that things could be more difficult from here on out. For some funds, it’s back to “investing 101.”

We’re now living through the end of a three or four decade long secular trend, and the strategies that have worked for super funds might no longer be as effective. But that’s what makes the job fun.