NYC Pension Funds Rose Most in 13 Years in Fiscal 2011, Comptroller Says

The funds were valued at about $119 billion in the year that ended June 30, up more than 20 percent from $97.8 billion a year earlier, according to preliminary estimates released today by Liu, whose office oversees the pensions.

“While the markets remain volatile, we have vigorously pursued a diversification strategy to enhance our returns while lowering pension costs to the city,” Liu said in a news release. The office hired people to target asset classes such as stocks, hedge funds, fixed income, private equity and real estate, he said.

U.S. public pension-fund assets rose 3.6 percent during the first three months of the year, the U.S. Census Bureau said June 30. Assets of the 100 largest plans grew by $93.9 billion in the first quarter to $2.73 trillion, up from $2.64 trillion on Dec. 31.