Portfolio returns: Q3 2025
| Total Return | 1M | 3M | YTD | 1YR | 3YR | 5YR | 10YR | Since Inc. July 12, 2013 |
IG Core Portfolio – Growth F | 4.11
| 8.03
| 13.03
| 17.52
| 20.81
| 13.05
| 10.25
| 10.50
|
Quartile rankings | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
IG Core Portfolio – Growth Series F
Q3 commentary 2025
Highlights
① The portfolio rose over the period, with positive contributions coming from all of the component funds and pools, especially North American equities.
② Emerging market equities performed best, and U.S. small- and mid-capitalization equities were weakest.
③ Large-capitalization U.S. equities contributed the most to total return.
Portfolio Overview
The IG Core Portfolio – Growth rose (by 8.0%) over the third quarter of 2025 and outperformed its global equity peer group median (6.9%). The portfolio benefited most from gains in North American equities.
Many equity indices, including the S&P 500 Index (total return 10.5% in Canadian dollars), the S&P/TSX Composite Index (total return 12.5%) and the MSCI EAFE Index (total return 7.2% in Canadian dollars) reached record highs during the period. Equities advanced almost steadily, with investors drawing comfort first from trade deals (or outlines of trade deals) that reduced U.S. tariffs (or threatened tariffs) with many trading partners, reducing uncertainty. Secondly, economic data remained surprisingly solid, especially in the U.S., and contained inflation pressures that allowed several central banks to lower benchmark interest rates, including the U.S. Federal Reserve, the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England. As a result, all equity components of the portfolio gained ground.
The best-performing portfolio component was the JPMorgan-IG Emerging Markets Pool. However, due to its relatively small weight in the portfolio, it had a limited impact on overall results. The Mackenzie-IG Canadian Equity Pool, with a return of more than 10%, was the next-best performer. However, it slightly lagged the S&P/TSX Composite Index, mainly due to an underweight exposure to the top-performing materials sector. The large-cap U.S. equity components, the Mackenzie-IG U.S. Equity Pool and the T. Rowe Price-IG U.S. Equity Pool, were the most significant contributors, together accounting for almost half of the portfolio’s total return. However, they, too, lagged their primary benchmark, the S&P 500 Index. The Fidelity-IG Canadian Equity Pool, the IG Mackenzie Pan Asian Equity Fund and the equity-heavy BlackRock-IG Active Allocation Pool IV also ranked among the top performers.
Among the weaker-performing components that detracted from the portfolio’s relative return, were the small- and mid-capitalization exposures and the Wellington-IG Global Equity Hedge Pool. The Mackenzie US Mid Cap Opportunities Fund was the portfolio’s poorest performer. It and the Aristotle-IG U.S. Small Cap Equity Pool both underperformed due to stock selection, even though, at the index level, small-capitalization stocks outperformed large caps in the U.S. during the period. The Wellington-IG Global Equity Hedge Pool is an alternative strategy intended to provide a steadying influence when used as a diversifying component of broader portfolios and is not expected to outperform during periods of strong global equity performance.
Market overview: signs of optimism emerge, despite the noise during "Liberation Day" fallout
The third quarter delivered broad gains across asset classes, with market performance largely overriding a backdrop of cautious sentiment. Investors looked past persistent trade policy headlines, increasingly treating the U.S. administration's tariff policy as noise rather than a core risk. The primary catalysts for the positive performance were a subtle shift toward lower-interest-rate expectations and resilient corporate earnings.
Signals from the U.S. Federal Reserve of imminent rate cuts were followed by a quarter percentage cut in September. Government bond yields eased into the quarter's end, supporting bond prices, while corporate bonds outperformed government bonds.
Market outlook: Easing cycle creates supportive backdrop
Investors today face a familiar challenge: separating durable economic signals from short-term noise. While softening labour markets and a temporary pause in manufacturing activity have captured headlines, a deeper look reveals a fundamentally resilient and encouraging landscape for the markets ahead.
The most significant development was the successful normalization of inflation, which is now stable and within central bank targets. This has paved the way for an easing cycle, providing a supportive backdrop for the economy. More importantly, corporate America continues to demonstrate its strength. Earnings have once again surpassed expectations, with second quarter results showing impressive year-over-year growth. This combination of moderating inflation and robust corporate health provides a powerful engine for market performance.
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