Small Kiwi market a problem for KiwiSaver

It has released its latest quarterly KiwiSaver survey, which showed healthy returns for investors across all providers and risk profiles. There was a direct correlation between allocation to growth assets and performance during the quarter.

But the report noted the small size of the listed equity market in New Zealand could be a problem as managers sought to place their growing assets under management locally.

It said the small size of the market would present a problem for managers as the pool of assets they had to invest grew to a point where they were limited in their ability to invest successfully in the local market.

“As fund size grows, it becomes more difficult for managers to manoeuvre their portfolios without impacting the price of relevant stocks. This problem also extends to the fixed income market, especially given the lack of issuance in New Zealand and reliance on Australian banks and the local government funding agency, but the concern is more imminent with regard to domestic equities.”