The group’s disciplined investment approach and robust liquidity management has been successful in minimising the impact of the substantial disbursements

by NUR HAZIQAH A MALEK / pic by TMR FILE

THE Employees Provident Fund (EPF) recorded a gross investment income of RM19.29 billion for the first quarter ended March 31, 2021 (1Q21), despite the ongoing uncertainties of the pandemic.

CEO Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan (picture) said the fund’s solid performance for the 1Q was a spillover from the global economic recovery which began in the second half of the year.

“We believe that the vaccination rollout, supportive fiscal and monetary policies worldwide will play a key role in facilitating economic activities and growth.

“The inflationary concerns did not derail the positive trend in the equity markets, and we took advantage of the opportunity to reposition our holdings in stocks that are fundamentally strong but undervalued,” he said in a statement yesterday.

The group’s equities registered RM14.28 billion in income during the quarter, which accounts for 74% of the gross investment income while fixed income instruments contributed a stable income of RM3.92 billion.

Income from real estate, infrastructure and money market instruments all came in at RM710 million and RM380 million respectively.

During the 1Q, the overseas investments generated an income of RM11.15 billion or 58% of the total gross investment income.

Following the cost write-down on listed equities, the fund recorded a net investment income of RM19.24 billion.

Amir said the group’s disciplined investment approach and robust liquidity management guided by the Strategic Asset Allocation has been successful in minimising the impact of the substantial disbursements on the EPF portfolio.

“This reflects the fund’s commitment to safeguarding our members’ retirement savings by preserving and enhancing the value of those savings, while ensuring that their short-term needs are met without compromising their long-term interests.

“While EPF remains cautious for the coming quarter, given the downside risks of the new highly transmissible Covid-19 variants, we assure members that we continuously take the necessary measures to protect their savings, supported by our strong governance framework, as we strive to meet our mandate and strategic targets of providing members with a sustainable retirement,” he said.

EPF’s investment assets stood at RM981.71 billion at the end of March 2021 of which 36% was invested overseas.

By asset class, fixed income instruments made up 46% of investments while equities comprised 44%, while money market instruments and real and infrastructure made up 4% and 6% respectively.