John C.A. Hagen - Head of Externally Managed Investments, WCB Alberta

Adam Whiteley, CFA - Senior Portfolio Manager, Insight Investment

Amid the historic recovery in risk assets across the investing landscape, which has been supported by unprecedented global monetary and fiscal stimulus following the outbreak of the Covid-19 virus fixed income investors are re-evaluating their allocations in the continued search for yield/income amid the current low-, /negative-, yielding interest rate environment, which is expected to be ‘lower for longer’.  Further, while fixed income has traditionally served the role of diversification for growth assets (e.g., equities), given the current interest rate environment and accommodative policy backdrop likely to persist, does this critical functionality still hold?  We believe fixed income still has a vital place in institutional investors’ portfolios, but evaluating the full opportunity set and ensuring the appropriate investment approach for maximizing the potential yield and return profile relative to an acceptable level of risk are necessary components for successfully navigating the uncertain road ahead. 

In this session, one of our Senior Portfolio Managers, Adam Whiteley, will discuss the merits of a global perspective when accessing the fixed income market and compare and contrast investment approaches for maximizing investors’ fixed income allocation with a leading Canadian institutional asset owner and provide a view of the current fixed income landscape and positioning ideas as the markets continue to progress in the dramatic risk asset recovery.