Labor funds post NT$976 billion in gains during January-November

Taipei, Jan. 2 (CNA) Funds managed by the Ministry of Labor's Bureau of Labor Funds posted solid year-to-date gains of about NT$976 billion (US$31.06 billion) in the first 11 months of 2025 on the back of soaring financial markets, the bureau said Friday.

Data compiled by the bureau showed the funds' accumulated gains, which reflect overall increases in the value of assets and investments, totaled NT$976.2 billion after NT$116.8 billion in gains in November alone.

The 11-month gains translated into a return of 14.10 percent, the data indicated.

The bureau said despite worries about the U.S. economy and a possible AI investment bubble, expectation about a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine helped global financial markets stabilize in November.

In the 11-month period, the Taiex, the Taiwan Stock Exchange's benchmark index, soared 19.93 percent, while the MSCI World Index also surged 21.07 percent with the Bloomberg Barclay Global Aggregate Bond Index rising 7.89 percent.

According to the bureau, 58.17 percent of the investments made by the labor funds were overseas in the 11 months, with the remaining 41.83 percent invested in the local market.

The combined value of the funds managed by the bureau, which include the Labor Pension Fund, the Labor Retirement Fund, the Labor Insurance Fund, the Employment Insurance Fund, and the Arrear Wage Payment Fund, totaled NT$7.695 trillion as of the end of November.

The value of assets in the new Labor Pension Fund, launched in 2015, totaled NT$5.10 trillion at the end of November, the highest of any fund, and its rate of return for the year stood at 13.70 percent, the bureau said.

The Labor Retirement Fund, which has been in place since 1984, had about NT$1.06 trillion in assets as of the end of November, with a rate of return of 20.07 percent, the bureau said.

Liu Li-ju (劉麗茹), deputy director of the bureau, told reporters that the accumulated gains of the labor funds are expected to continue to hit a new high, breaking NT$1.04 trillion in 2025, with the Taiex surging 25.7 percent in the year along with gains posted by other financial markets.

Meanwhile, the Bureau of Public Service Pension Fund said on Friday that the Public Service Pension Fund managed by the bureau recorded NT$138.09 billion in gains during the same 11 months, equal to a rate of return of 13.42 percent.