P+ reports strong returns amid market recovery

Denmark’s P+ reported strong returns across all its investment products this year so far, driven by a recovery in financial markets following spring turbulence triggered by US tariff announcements.

According to independent industry research from Nikolaj Holdt Mikkelsen, P+ Sustainable delivered the best three-year returns in the pension industry, while P+ Life Cycle ranked third.

These results place P+ Sustainable and P+ Life Cycle in the top third of market interest rate products for members with 15 years to retirement and a medium risk profile.

By the end of July, P+ Sustainable achieved a year-to-date return of 5.7 per cent, P+ Life Cycle returned 5.5 per cent, and P+ Balance delivered 4.3 per cent.

P+ investment director, Jasper Riis, said markets have responded positively to the gradual clarification of US tariffs, which have outweighed the negative effects of increased tariffs and contributed to a strong market.

However, Riis said that from his perspective, “it is still uncertain how the tariffs and their effect will end up being distributed between higher prices for consumers and lower earnings for companies”.

He noted that P+ are following this dynamic, as both can be decisive for market development.

“But as it stands now, there is room for central banks to counter any lower growth with a more lenient monetary policy, and we are therefore not too worried about growth coming to a standstill," Riis said.

The fund said that, in light of the recent spring market turbulence and shifting signals from the US, members have inquired about how these developments might affect P+'s investment strategy and appetite in the US stock market moving forward.

According to Riis, there is no need for major adjustments to either strategy or portfolio, as the investment strategy has performed well through a turbulent first half of the year.

“At P+, we have a strong focus on ensuring that we have a broad portfolio with sufficient risk diversification. This diversification occurs both across asset classes and subcategories and across geography,” he said.

“As a long-term investor, we see geographical risk diversification as very important, and the investment strategy at P+ already implies that the total investments in Europe constitute a relatively large proportion of Europe's share of the global economy.”

However, he stressed the importance of the US stock market, calling it an “absolutely crucial” part of the global stock market with a significant role in a global portfolio.

He confirmed that, given the circumstances, P+ has no concrete plans to restrict its US investments, despite political developments that could raise concerns in certain industries.



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