AP Pension has revealed that its positive returns in the second quarter (Q2) has made up for a large part of the losses it saw in the first quarter (Q1).

Publishing its half-year results, AP Pension said the positive return has not quite made up for all the losses in Q1 and are still in the negative territory. A customer 10 years before retirement had a negative return of -2 per cent, while customers with 20 and 30 years to retirement had a negative return of about -4 per cent after the first half of the year.

Noting the impact of coronavirus on the financial markets, the pension provider said in Q1 the virus heavily impacted them. However, in Q2, whilst coronavirus is still part of everyday life, the mood in the financial markets has become more positive.

AP Pension investment director, Ralf Magnussen, said: “What we have seen in the second quarter has been completely different than in the first quarter. We had a really good return in the second quarter on shares, credit bonds and other assets”.

He added that financial measures, in connection with the coronavirus crisis, have helped to turn the tide in the financial markets.

“The authorities took some measures in the financial markets, and when we look back, we found a bottom in the stock market on 23 March, when the US Federal Reserve came up with a number of measures that turned the stock market and credit market around.”

In addition, AP Pension has seen a positive return in Q2 for members that are invested in its sustainable range, AP Sustainable. It means that losses over the first half of the year have not been too big.

“When we look at the returns for AP Sustainable, they have been great. For a customer 10 years away from retirement, we end up close to zero, and that is good considering the financial turmoil. For customers with 20 and 30 years to retirement, the losses are slightly larger with a loss of about -3 per cent with 20 years to retirement and -4 per cent for people with 30 years to retirement,” Magnussen said.

Magnussen does not believe that the large fluctuations seen in the financial markets in the first half of 2020, will continue in the latter part of the year.

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