Issue - meetings

The Committee noted the performance of the Fund over periods to the end of June 2022 along with the Economic and Market update which effectively set the scene.

Mr Harkin noted the following key points:

-       He emphasised the difficult period for all assets over the quarter to 30 June 2022 with the exception of commodities which had performed strongly. Over this period, there had been pressure on equity markets which trended downwards as rising bond yields meant the present value of future earnings decreased.

-       Over the quarter, the Fund’s total market value decreased by c£185 million to £2,280.2 million. He believed that the Fund’s assets had been resilient during a difficult time due to the diversified investment strategy overall.

-       Despite that, the longer-term figures for the Fund’s performance were still strong on a relative basis and the Fund had been protected through the flightpath strategy through difficult economic environments.

-       The biggest challenge for the Fund currently was the inflationary pressure given that the 12 month CPI rate for the UK increased to 9.4% in June 2022. It was crucial to ensure that the Fund was protected, as far as possible, in the short-term against this type of inflationary pressure.

-       It was hoped that the initial thoughts regarding the Investment Strategy Statement would be brought to the next Committee meeting in November but as it stood the Fund had a robust investment strategy.

RESOLVED:

The Committee noted the performance of the Fund over periods to the end of June 2022 along with the Economic and Market update which effectively set the scene.