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NEWS from the Office of the New York State Comptroller
Contact: Press Office 518-474-4015

NYS Common Retirement Fund Announces Second Quarter Results

Estimated Value Passes Milestone at $201.3 Billion

November 10, 2017

The New York State Common Retirement Fund's (Fund) overall return in the second quarter of the state fiscal year 2017-2018 was 3.67 percent for the three-month period ending Sept. 30, 2017, with an estimated value of $201.3 billion, according to New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

"I am pleased to report that the Fund has reached the $200 billion milestone, during a quarter in which returns exceeded the strong performance we saw at the start of the fiscal year," DiNapoli said. "The Fund's value continued to rise with equities markets this year, but more significantly it has come a long way since 2008. We take the long view of success, investing in ways that provide consistent returns and retirement security for our members, retirees and beneficiaries for decades to come."

The Fund's estimated value reflects benefits paid out during the quarter. The Fund's audited value as of the March 31, 2017 end of the state fiscal year was revised upward to $192.4 billion.

As of Sept. 30, 2017, the Fund had 39.2 percent of its assets invested in publicly traded domestic equities and 18.0 percent in international public equities. The remaining Fund assets by allocation are invested in cash, bonds and mortgages (24.3 percent), private equity (7.8 percent), real estate (6.6 percent), absolute return strategies (2.7 percent) and opportunistic alternatives and real assets (1.4 percent).

DiNapoli initiated quarterly performance reporting by the Fund in 2009 as part of his on-going efforts to increase accountability and transparency.

About the New York State Common Retirement Fund

The New York State Common Retirement Fund is the third largest public pension fund in the United States. The Fund holds and invests the assets of the New York State and Local Retirement System on behalf of more than one million state and local government employees and retirees and their beneficiaries. The Fund has consistently been ranked as one of the best managed and best funded plans in the nation. The Fund's fiscal year ends March 31, 2018.