The FP Canada Standards Council and the Institut québécois de planification financière announced the release of the 2020 Projection Assumption Guidelines on Thursday.

The guidelines, which are designed to help financial planners make long-term projections of 10 years or more, were developed prior to the significant market volatility triggered by Covid-19 in February, according to a release.

“Periods of market volatility, like the one we’ve seen recently, can trigger fear and uncertainty among clients,” Lesley Poole, chair of FP Canada Standards Council’s Standards Panel, said in a statement. “The Projection Assumption Guidelines provide a useful tool for financial planners in helping clients stay focused on their long-term plan.”

The 2020 guidelines assume an annual inflation rate of 2% and return rates of 2.4% and 2.9% for short-term and fixed income investments, respectively.

Canadian equities are projected to return 6.1%, foreign developed market equities are projected to return 6.4% and emerging market equities are projected to return 7.1%.

The guidelines are based on a variety of sources, including the Canada Pension Plan Actuarial Report and the Quebec Pension Plan Actuarial Valuation, and historical data from the S&P/TSX composite index, the S&P 500 index and the MSCI EAFE index.

An addendum includes the data sources on which the guidelines are based.