With the stock market swinging wildly in recent weeks and losing more than 20 percent of its value since the summer, these are trying times for pension fund managers.
On the last day of September, in fact, the value of the State of Wisconsin Investment Board’s holdings — which now total nearly 73 B billion dollars — fell by a whopping $3 billion. The next day, however, it gained some of that loss back.
Keith Bozarth, executive director of the state investment board, tells WisBusiness.com that he believes the board’s long-term focus can manage the market’s volatility. Bozarth also says his agency may actually be able to scoop up bargains in the form of strong companies with distressed shares.
He said the board is — in his words — “sticking to our base disciplines” and rebalancing its holdings as the market becomes distorted.
Bozarth said he believes the market will eventually bounce back and that Wisconsin public retirees shouldn’t worry about their pension checks because the fund is well-supported for many years into the future.
The checks will be there. But after the WisBusiness.com interview with Bozarth came news that pension payouts to retired government workers could drop by 1 percent to 3 percent starting in May 2009. The final numbers, which will be based on overall 2008 performance, won’t be calculated until early in January.
