POWERED BY MOMENTUM MEDIA
Resilient share markets drive super returns
Superannuation funds delivered a fifth consecutive positive annual return of 7.7 per cent in 2016 as a result of resilient Australian and global share markets, according to Chant West.
Chant West's latest growth super fund report found Catholic Super and Hostplus were tied for the top return spot at 10.1 per cent, followed by Cbus Growth (9.6 per cent), and CareSuper Balanced (9.4 per cent).
Chant West director, Warren Chant, said: "Members should be very pleased with the 2016 result, which was achieved against a backdrop of unsettled politics and a relatively weak economic environment".
Chant said the three key stories in 2016 were the shock Brexit vote, the surprising Donald Trump election victory, and the timing of the second US interest rate hike.
"All of these created uncertainty, but share markets again proved how resilient they can be," he said.
"Investors chose to focus on the gradual improvement in the US economy and what that might mean for global growth, and as a result international shares returned 8.9 per cent in hedged terms and 7.9 per cent unhedged. Australian shares did even better, returning a healthy 11.8 per cent."
The report found of the traditional sectors, Australian listed property was the best performer with a return of 13.2 per cent. Unlisted Australian and global listed property produced returns of 11.1 per cent and six per cent respectively.
"The better performing funds were generally those that had higher allocations to Australian shares, Australian listed property, unlisted property and infrastructure. Those that kept more of their defensive assets in bonds rather than cash would also have benefited," Chant said.
Industry funds outperformed retail funds over the year, returning 8.2 per cent versus 6.9 per cent.
"Industry funds also hold the advantage over the longer term, having returned 5.5 per cent per annum against 4.6 per cent for retail funds over the 10 years to December 2016," the report said.
Recommended for you
The lower outlook for inflation has set the stage for another two rate cuts over the first half of 2026, according to Westpac.
With private asset valuations emerging as a key concern for both regulators and the broader market, Apollo Global Management has called on the corporate regulator to issue clear principles on valuation practices, including guidance on the disclosures it expects from market participants.
Institutional asset owners are largely rethinking their exposure to the US, with private markets increasingly being viewed as a strategic investment allocation, new research has shown.
Australia’s corporate regulator has been told it must quickly modernise its oversight of private markets, after being caught off guard by the complexity, size, and opacity of the asset class now dominating institutional portfolios.
TOP PERFORMING FUNDS
ACS FIXED INT - AUSTRALIA/GLOBAL BOND
Fund name
3y(%)pa
1
DomaCom DFS Mortgage
92.15 3 y p.a(%)
2
Global X 21Shares Bitcoin ETF
53.24 3 y p.a(%)
3
Global X GlobalX FANG+ ETF
43.15 3 y p.a(%)
4
DomaCom Shoreline North Coogee
36.26 3 y p.a(%)
5
GAM LSA Private Shares AU I
35.87 3 y p.a(%)
