SSS to balance its stock market portfolio

The Social Security System (SSS), the state pension fund for private employees, plans to improve its income from investments by balancing its stock market portfolio.

SSS president and chief executive officer Romulo Neri said this is one of the measures the agency is looking at to improve its investment income and further strengthen the agency.

“We’re somewhat heavily weighted on some stocks so we’re trying to re-balance our stock portfolio,” he told reporters.

He also said that the agency plans to invest in some real estate projects given the attractiveness of the property sector.

At present, SSS invests its funds in various instruments, including government securities and the local equities market.

In the first half of this year, SSS revenues from investments and other sources also increased by 22 percent to P19.07 billion from P15.59 billion during the same period last year.

“This includes our P9.11 billion realized gain from selling our Banco de Oro stocks, P2.88 billion from other marketable securities and the P1.34 billion dividend from the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co.,” Neri said.

From the equities market alone, the SSS earned P13.23 billion from January to June, or seven percent above the target of P12.28 billion.   – Iris Gonzales