The Canada Pension Plan earned 1.2% on its investments in the second quarter of fiscal 2005, as solid fixed-income gains offset flat returns from equity assets.

The federal pension fund said Friday its reserve fund grew by $2 billion to $75.2 billion in the quarter ended September 30.

Employees and employers paid $1.1 billion in CPP contributions, and the fund posted $906 million in investment earnings.

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP IB)said the quarter produced a 0.02% decline in its equity, real estate and infrastructure portfolio, but fixed-income assets generated 2.2%.

The assets of the Canada Pension Plan at September 30 consisted of $35.6 billion in bonds and money market securities and $39.6 billion in stocks, private equities, property and infrastructure.

The fund’s six-month rate of investment return was 0.9%.

“Our focus remains on the long term,” said John MacNaughton, president of the CPP IB, in a release.

“We are continuing to broadly diversify the portfolio in order to help ensure sustainability of the CPP for generations to come.”

Based on actuarial projections, CPP IB predicts CPP contributions will exceed benefits paid until 2021, providing 17 years before the fund’s investment income is needed to help pay pensions.

Also today, the CPP IB announced a $50 million commitment to EdgeStone Venture Fund II. This Canadian venture capital fund, with a target of $150 million, will seek investment opportunities in early-stage software companies in enterprise solutions, transaction processing and networking.

With this latest commitment, the total amount committed to Canadian private equity funds is $1.5 billion, which includes $550 million to Canadian venture capital.

“We continue to seek investment opportunities in Canadian venture capital as part of our portfolio diversification strategy. We believe such investments will generate superior long-term returns,” said MacNaughton,

The commitment to EdgeStone brings the CPP IB’s private equity commitments to $7.1 billion committed to 51 limited partnerships managed by 41 private equity firms.
The CPP IB committed $50 million in 2001 to the predecessor fund, EdgeStone Venture Fund I.