KiwiSaver members reach almost 1.2m

KiwiSaver membership reached almost 1.2 million people in its second year, a growth of 54%, according to figures released by the Inland Revenue Department (IRD).

“We saw KiwiSaver’s membership reach almost 1.2 million people (1,189,597 as at end of September, 2009), with growth of 54% in that second year,’” Revenue Minister Peter Dunne says. 

“That means about 32,000 people joining every month which is tremendous.”

He said it is particularly significant to see the number of young people taking responsibility for saving for their future.

“The uptake has been good across the board, but it‘s particularly notable among people aged from 19 through to their mid-20s.”

Dunne said in the year to June 2009, $2.1 billion in contributions from members, employers and the Crown were passed to providers for investment, more than double the amount for the first year. In total, $3.15 billion in contribution was transferred to providers in the scheme’s first two years – or $4.25 billion to the end of September.

The report also looks at members’ contribution rates, which included the changes in April 2009. It found that of those who joined KiwiSaver since the changes, approximately half were contributing at 2%. However, most of those who joined before April 2009 have not changed their contribution rate.

The evaluation process runs from 2007/08 until 2012, and is a joint project between IRD, the Ministry of Economic Development and Housing New Zealand. 

Its objectives are to:

• Assess the implementation and delivery of KiwiSaver in order to inform ongoing development and service delivery
• Assess whether the key features of KiwiSaver are generating the expected outcomes
• Monitor KiwiSaver usage to understand the scale and pattern of take-up
• Examine the impact of KiwiSaver on individuals’ saving habits and asset accumulation
• Examine the impact of KiwiSaver on superannuation markets and the financial sector.

KiwiSaver rally strongest in riskier, long term plays

KiwiSaver investors with strong stomachs and funds in high growth, higher risk assets did best as the global market recovery over the past six months, according to a Morningstar Australasia survey.

A substantial investment market rally has seen the NZ sharemarket up 22%, Australia up 35% and the aggregate global sharemarket up almost 12% since March. “The past six months have clearly illustrated how quickly markets can turn around,” said Chris Douglas, Morningstar Australasia’s manager, Fund Analysis. 

“KiwiSavers who switched to conservative options would have missed out on these rapid gains. While short-term volatility is inevitable, KiwiSaver options investing in growth assets continue to offer the greatest potential for growing the value of retirement savings over the longer term.” 

Reporting on over 120 KiwiSaver investment options, all categories produced positive results said Douglas. The best-performing funds were the growth-oriented vehicles with greater proportions of their assets in local and international share and listed property. ”

These were the funds that were hardest hit by the market declines from late 2007 to early 2009,” he said. “Most KiwiSaver options in the Multi-Sector Growth and Aggressive categories returned 15 to 20% over the six month period.

Conversely, more conservative funds that invested principally in cash and fixed interest have not benefitted from this rally.” 

The majority of KiwiSaver assets are in multi-sector funds which invest in a range of assets. However, the top performing KiwiSaver funds over the two years to September 30 2009 were in single-sector categories according to Morningstar.

An absolute return approach and ultra-high cash weighting enabled Aon KiwiSaver Milford Aggressive to return almost 13%. “We have cautioned in previous reports about the trade-off between maintaining a high cash weighting and potential returns,” Douglas said.

“A high cash weighting will hold up returns during market downturns, but acts as a drag when markets recover. The three and six-month returns to September 30 2009 for a number of options illustrate this clearly – they did not perform as well during the market rally as funds with higher weightings in growth assets.” 

To view the full KiwiSaver performance table, click here.

KiwiSaver rally strongest in riskier, long term plays

KiwiSaver investors with strong stomachs and funds in high growth, higher risk assets did best as the global market recovery over the past six months, according to a Morningstar Australasia survey.

A substantial investment market rally has seen the NZ sharemarket up 22%, Australia up 35% and the aggregate global sharemarket up almost 12% since March. “The past six months have clearly illustrated how quickly markets can turn around,” said Chris Douglas, Morningstar Australasia’s manager, Fund Analysis. 

“KiwiSavers who switched to conservative options would have missed out on these rapid gains. While short-term volatility is inevitable, KiwiSaver options investing in growth assets continue to offer the greatest potential for growing the value of retirement savings over the longer term.” 

Reporting on over 120 KiwiSaver investment options, all categories produced positive results said Douglas. The best-performing funds were the growth-oriented vehicles with greater proportions of their assets in local and international share and listed property. ”

These were the funds that were hardest hit by the market declines from late 2007 to early 2009,” he said. “Most KiwiSaver options in the Multi-Sector Growth and Aggressive categories returned 15 to 20% over the six month period.

Conversely, more conservative funds that invested principally in cash and fixed interest have not benefitted from this rally.” 

The majority of KiwiSaver assets are in multi-sector funds which invest in a range of assets. However, the top performing KiwiSaver funds over the two years to September 30 2009 were in single-sector categories according to Morningstar.

An absolute return approach and ultra-high cash weighting enabled Aon KiwiSaver Milford Aggressive to return almost 13%. “We have cautioned in previous reports about the trade-off between maintaining a high cash weighting and potential returns,” Douglas said.

“A high cash weighting will hold up returns during market downturns, but acts as a drag when markets recover. The three and six-month returns to September 30 2009 for a number of options illustrate this clearly – they did not perform as well during the market rally as funds with higher weightings in growth assets.” 

To view the full KiwiSaver performance table, click here.

KiwiSaver Performance Survey – Returns to 30 September 2009

KiwiSaver Performance Survey – Returns to 30 September 2009

KiwiSaver Performance Survey – Returns to 30 September 2009
Default Options	Underlying Manager	3-month (%)	6-month (%)	1-year (%)
AMP KiwiSaver (Default) Fund	AMP	2.52263	4.44335	2.92895
ASB KiwiSaver Conservative Fund (Default)	ASB	3.80984	6.36083	6.05995
AXA KiwiSaver Income Plus (Default)	AXA	5.31008	9.66905	8.04755
ING KiwiSaver – Conservative Fund (Default)	ING	4.12122	6.34851	5.64229
Mercer KiwiSaver Conservative (Default)	Mercer	6.5506	12.38718	9.2587
TOWER KiwiPlan-Cash Enhanced (Default)	Tower	3.39631	6.83383	4.77185
Multisector Options
Conservative	Underlying Manager	3-month (%)	6-month (%)	1-year (%)
AMP KiwiSaver (Default) Fund	AMP	2.52263	4.44335	2.92895
ANZ KiwiSaver – Conservative Fund	ING	4.21664	6.31931	4.72149
ASB FirstChoice KiwiSaver Tracker Conserv Fund	ASB	3.814	6.3467	6.21177
ASB KiwiSaver Conservative Fund (Default)	ASB	3.80984	6.36083	6.05995
Asteron KiwiSaver Conservative Fund	Asteron	4.19651	7.3191	4.50018
AXA KiwiSaver Income Plus (Default)	AXA	5.31008	9.66905	8.04755
Fidelity KiwiSaver-Capital Guaranteed Kiwi	Fidelity	2.40494	3.76752	3.87059
Fidelity KiwiSaver-Conservative Kiwi Fund	Fidelity	4.09445	7.71898	3.55879
Fisher Funds Conservative KiwiSaver Fund	Fisher	0	—	—
Gareth Morgan Kiwisaver Scheme Conservative Fund	GMK	1.96988	3.12231	3.68837
Grosvenor KiwiSaver Enhanced Income Fund	Grosvenor	0.69037	2.12922	4.81732
ING KiwiSaver – Conservative Fund (Default)	ING	4.12122	6.34851	5.64229
ING KiwiSaver SIL Conservative Fund	ING	4.30109	6.43129	5.02255
Mercer KiwiSaver Conservative (Default)	Mercer	6.5506	12.38718	9.2587
National Bank KiwiSaver – Conservative	ING	4.21843	6.40921	4.83301
Smartshares Smartkiwi Conservative Fund	NZX	3.10014	4.56735	2.99765
TOWER KiwiPlan-Cash Enhanced (Default)	Tower	3.39631	6.83383	4.77185
Average		3.453949	6.260859	5.058188
Moderate	Underlying Manager	3-month (%)	6-month (%)	1-year (%)
AMP KiwiSaver Conservative Fund	AMP	3.10935	3.93446	5.44119
AMP KiwiSaver Moderate Fund	AMP	4.03434	5.8743	1.14654
ANZ KiwiSaver – Conservative Balanced Fund	ING	6.05413	9.80874	3.51055
ASB FirstChoice KiwiSaver Active Conservative Fund	ASB	6.25156	11.0979	7.42536
ASB FirstChoice KiwiSaver Tracker Moderate Fund	ASB	7.11619	12.53047	3.04221
ASB KiwiSaver Moderate Fund	ASB	7.03761	12.50552	3.08647
AXA KiwiSaver Conservative	AXA	5.95975	10.70419	8.41956
Grosvenor KiwiSaver Conservative Fund	Grosvenor	4.15655	8.61812	5.37952
Huljich Conservative Diversified KiwiSaver Fund	Huljich	8.36612	12.68067	19.24964
ING KiwiSaver – Conservative Balanced	ING	5.62881	9.29015	4.63475
ING KiwiSaver SIL Conservative Balanced Fund	ING	6.17226	9.99022	3.88969
Mercer Super Trust KiwiSaver Conservative	Mercer	7.25286	14.58588	7.03011
National Bank KiwiSaver – Conservative Balanced	ING	6.09771	9.83571	3.5394
Smartshares Smartkiwi Balanced Fund	NZX	10.14226	16.15241	1.35078
TOWER KiwiPlan-Conservative	Tower	5.78647	10.787	4.97452
Westpac KiwiSaver-Conservative Fund	Westpac	4.48032	6.82961	4.9441
Average		6.102893	10.32658	5.441524
Balanced	Underlying Manager	3-month (%)	6-month (%)	1-year (%)
AMP KiwiSaver – TYNDALL Balanced Fund	Tyndall	8.34534	13.41126	-1.11781
AMP KiwiSaver Balanced Fund	AMP	5.55301	9.18585	-1.6148
AMP KiwiSaver Moderate Balanced Fund	AMP	4.97733	7.86453	-1.10451
AMP KiwiSaver-TOWER Balanced Fund	AMP	7.81601	10.9093	0.62979
ANZ KiwiSaver – Balanced Fund	ING	7.82055	13.01909	2.49132
ASB FirstChoice KiwiSaver Active Balanced Fund	ASB	9.04659	16.60809	3.88155
ASB FirstChoice KiwiSaver Tracker Balanced Fund	ASB	9.24189	17.12086	1.00573
ASB KiwiSaver Balanced Fund	ASB	9.14818	17.04686	0.60108
Asteron KiwiSaver Balanced Fund	Asteron	8.20958	14.98788	3.96682
AXA KiwiSaver Balanced	AXA	9.95539	19.75835	7.02054
Brook Professional KiwiSaver Scheme Balanced Fund	Brook	4.91577	7.63302	4.72015
Fidelity KiwiSaver-Balanced Kiwi Fund	Fidelity	5.70841	11.83666	4.51146
Fidelity KiwiSaver-Ethical Kiwi	Fidelity	5.74739	11.96247	0.42986
Gareth Morgan Kiwisaver Scheme Balanced Fund	GMK	2.80208	3.88421	-0.20224
Grosvenor KiwiSaver Balanced Fund	Grosvenor	7.14453	13.68721	4.80635
Huljich Balanced Diversified KiwiSaver Fund	Huljich	11.32757	16.55557	18.68098
ING KiwiSaver – Balanced	ING	7.07559	12.0811	3.53241
ING KiwiSaver SIL Balanced Fund	ING	7.93928	13.16766	3.0392
Mercer KiwiSaver Balanced	Mercer	11.00625	22.27623	4.75364
Mercer Super Trust KiwiSaver Active Balanced	Mercer	10.90709	22.00377	4.95829
Mercer Super Trust KiwiSaver Moderate	Mercer	8.89448	17.62163	7.38444
National Bank KiwiSaver – Balanced	ING	7.8247	13.01029	2.58186
TOWER KiwiPlan-Balanced	Tower	6.90601	14.40538	2.80248
Westpac KiwiSaver-Balanced Fund	Westpac	7.06265	12.14809	4.34369
Average		7.723986	13.84106	3.420928
Growth	Underlying Manager	3-month (%)	6-month (%)	1-year (%)
AMP KiwiSaver-ING Balanced Fund	AMP	8.65028	13.65842	-1.92589
AMP KiwiSaver Growth Fund	AMP	6.80703	11.78856	-7.26702
ANZ KiwiSaver – Balanced Growth Fund	ING	9.62051	16.46856	1.2178
ANZ KiwiSaver – Growth Fund	ING	11.33393	19.77642	-0.09061
ASB FirstChoice KiwiSaver Active Growth Fund	ASB	10.81775	19.847	3.08264
ASB FirstChoice KiwiSaver Tracker Growth Fund	ASB	11.07808	21.42501	-1.82704
ASB KiwiSaver Growth Fund	ASB	10.99306	21.35399	-1.87966
Asteron KiwiSaver Balanced Growth Fund	Asteron	10.97161	20.5982	1.72519
Fidelity KiwiSaver-Growth Kiwi Fund	Fidelity	7.21669	16.63815	1.65684
Gareth Morgan Kiwisaver Scheme Growth Fund	GMK	2.23096	3.53547	-5.02577
Huljich Growth Diversified KiwiSaver Fund	Huljich	13.58206	19.04957	21.03725
ING KiwiSaver – Balanced Growth	ING	8.51753	15.02408	2.52307
ING KiwiSaver – Growth Fund	ING	9.9574	17.92986	1.1261
ING KiwiSaver SIL Balanced Growth Fund	ING	9.75111	16.65533	1.77184
ING KiwiSaver SIL Growth Fund	ING	11.47832	19.91034	0.36164
Mercer Super Trust KiwiSaver Growth	Mercer	11.54995	23.23812	3.15992
National Bank KiwiSaver – Balanced Growth	ING	9.64049	16.40872	1.1616
National Bank KiwiSaver – Growth	ING	11.33819	19.63205	-0.34444
Westpac KiwiSaver-Growth Fund	Westpac	8.54191	14.66939	3.41119
Average		9.688256	17.24249	1.256561
Aggressive	Underlying Manager	3-month (%)	6-month (%)	1-year (%)
AMP KiwiSaver Aggressive Fund	AMP	7.6657	13.70744	-9.76458
AXA KiwiSaver Growth	AXA	12.38353	25.60231	4.39517
Brook Professional KiwiSaver Scheme Growth Fund	Brook	8.58495	12.96381	6.71695
Fidelity KiwiSaver-Aggressive Kiwi Fund	Fidelity	9.74324	21.85532	2.99862
First NZ Capital KiwiSaver Scheme	FNZC	5.98929	12.84321	-8.65922
Fisher Funds Growth KiwiSaver Fund	Fisher	15.32222	36.86884	20.55343
Grosvenor KiwiSaver Geared Growth Fund	Grosvenor	—	—	—
Grosvenor KiwiSaver High Growth Fund	Grosvenor	10.18129	21.12985	-0.30908
Mercer KiwiSaver High Growth	Mercer	13.51313	27.60667	0.31526
Mercer Super Trust KiwiSaver High Growth	Mercer	13.37516	27.31785	0.46753
TOWER KiwiPlan-Growth	Tower	10.13096	21.2549	0.61897
Westpac KiwiSaver – Capital Protection Plan (1)	Westpac	10.18978	18.98791	—
Average		10.64357	21.83074	1.733305
Single Sector Options
Cash	Underlying Manager	3-month (%)	6-month (%)	1-year (%)
AMP KiwiSaver Cash Fund	AMP	0.94306	1.93129	5.44099
ANZ KiwiSaver Cash Fund	NZGT	0.50752	1.12728	3.92079
ASB FirstChoice KiwiSaver NZ Cash Fund	ASB	0.58698	1.30777	4.21722
ASB KiwiSaver NZ Bank Deposit Fund	ASB	0.58677	1.31638	4.22593
Asteron KiwiSaver Capital Fund	Asteron	0.85932	1.79721	5.18293
AXA KiwiSaver Cash	AXA	1.25376	2.46013	4.89645
ING KiwiSaver – Cash Plus Fund	ING	0.64557	1.3361	4.28279
ING KiwiSaver SIL Cash Plus Fund	ING	0.53812	1.0728	3.67758
Mercer KiwiSaver Cash	Mercer	0.89499	1.80615	5.16302
National Bank KiwiSaver Cash Fund	NZGT	0.48818	1.1368	3.94059
TOWER KiwiPlan-Preservation	Tower	0.72759	1.63115	4.70372
Westpac KiwiSaver-Cash Fund	Westpac	0.81652	1.72175	4.09228
Fixed Income	Underlying Manager	3-month (%)	6-month (%)	1-year (%)
Asteron KiwiSaver High Yield Fixed Interest Fund	Asteron	2.51598	3.79741	4.02022
ING KiwiSaver SIL New Zealand Fixed Interest Fund	ING	1.70578	3.02361	1.25211
ING KiwiSaver SIL International Fixed Int Fund	ING	2.55103	2.10282	9.59206
Property	Underlying Manager	3-month	6-month	1-year
Asteron KiwiSaver Global Property Fund	Asteron	27.44681	51.49216	-27.7617
ING KiwiSaver SIL Australasian Property Fund	ING	18.19272	21.78124	-2.67473
ING KiwiSaver SIL International Property Fund	ING	26.37362	58.55104	-25.5953
Australasian Equity	Underlying Manager	3-month (%)	6-month (%)	1-year (%)
Aon KiwiSaver Milford Aggressive Fund	Milford	7.98792	14.41682	18.55229
Asteron KiwiSaver SRI Share Fund	Asteron	12.3891	24.40843	8.45911
Asteron KiwiSaver Trans-Tasman Small Companies Shr	Asteron	20.00222	43.90152	14.84419
ING KiwiSaver SIL Australasian Share Fund	ING	13.91546	20.49329	5.04117
Smartshares Smartkiwi Growth Fund	NZX	15.98917	25.85076	-1.61254
International Equity	Underlying Manager	3-month (%)	6-month (%)	1-year (%)
ASB FirstChoice KiwiSaver Active High Growth Fund	ASB	10.27146	21.32184	-8.3564
ASB FirstChoice KiwiSaver Global Sustainability Fd	ASB	8.87045	19.13408	8.05997
Asteron KiwiSaver International Share Fund	Asteron	9.17462	15.02797	-10.7277
ING KiwiSaver SIL International Share Fund	ING	5.93213	13.68907	-5.22682
ING Kiwisaver SIL Sustainable Growth Fund	Super’tion Inv	5.82513	10.81369	-7.38468
TOWER KiwiPlan-Equity	Tower	9.86101	22.65597	-3.60041
Miscellaneous	Underlying Manager	3-month (%)	6-month (%)	1-year (%)
Fidelity KiwiSaver-Options Kiwi Fund	Fidelity	10.12566	18.02974	2.07276