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February, 2021
Merseyside boosts infrastructure investment
Merseyside Pension Fund has committed to a new co-investment vehicle created by French asset manager Mirova to own a share of a Portuguese hydroelectric portfolio. Portuguese electric utility firm EDP announced in December that it sold the portfolio, located in the Douro valley with 1.7GW capacity, to a consortium of Credit Agricole Assurances, French ...
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February, 2021
LGPS forecast to record negative cashflow in near-term
The LGPS will be in an aggregate negative cashflow position within the next few years, investment advisory group Linchpin has forecast, as the yield on assets traditionally used to match liabilities has slumped. During the year to March 2020, there was a deficit of 1.2% in contributions over expenditure, according to data from the Ministry of Housing, ...
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February, 2021
Fund managers lacking on climate engagement
The portfolios of the world’s 30 largest fund managers, which collectively hold $50 trillion in assets, continue to be misaligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement and require urgent action to drive change in key climate-risk sectors, a report by think tank InfluenceMap has found. The report scored companies based on three criteria: engagement with ...
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February, 2021
Busy year forecast for bulk annuity market
Market volatility resulting from the ongoing pandemic and Brexit could present derisking opportunities for schemes, a report for Willis Towers Watson suggests. Over £30 billion of buy-ins and buyouts were completed last year, according to the group, while more than £24 billion of longevity swaps were carried out. However, a similar level could be ...
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February, 2021
Retail therapy
Joanna Turner, Head of Property Research, Canada Life Asset Management. Joanna Turner from Canada Life Asset Management looks at how The pandemic has accelerated changes in UK shops, creating a 20-40% oversupply of retail space Taking a lockdown walk down pretty much any UK high street offers a lugubrious vista of retail’s bruised survivors ...
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February, 2021
Schemes confident on pandemic resilience
The bulk of schemes believe Covid-19 is having only little or no impact on the day-to-day running of their scheme, according to a survey by Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA), but cautioned against lifting of regulatory easements too soon. More than four-fifths of schemes said the pandemic was not having a detrimental effect on them running ...
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February, 2021
Investors issue climate resolution at HSBC
Investors with combined assets of $2.4 trillion under management have filed a climate change resolution at HSBC, alongside 117 individual shareholders. The resolution, co-ordinated by responsible investment ShareAction, calls on HSBC to publish a strategy and targets to reduce its exposure to fossil fuel assets, starting with coal, on a timeline ...
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February, 2021
UK dividends forecast to rise in 2021
Dividends paid by UK companies fell 44% during 2020, to the lowest annual figure since 2011, according to the Link Group UK Dividend Monitor. However, Link forecasts a 10% rise in headline dividends, which include special dividends, under a best-case scenario this year as pay-outs recover from March. Two-thirds of companies cancelled or cut their ...
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February, 2021
Impact bond issuance surges post-pandemic
A record $500 billion in impact bonds were issued last year, according to data from Bloomberg, an increase of 60% on the 2019. This increase could easily be repeated in 2021, according to a review by Insight Investment. which would take the overall market close to $2 trillion by the end of the year. Government-related issuance, at $260 billion, ...
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February, 2021
LGPS schemes commit to infrastructure fundraising
GLIL Infrastructure (GLIL) has raised a further £500 million from its LGPS members as it bids to drive further investment in core UK infrastructure assets. Members making the commitment included Greater Manchester, Merseyside and West Yorkshire Pension Funds as part of the Northern LGPS pool, and Lancashire County Pension Fund, Royal County of Berkshire ...
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