AustralianSuper posted a 10.61 per cent return for its High Growth option, while Cbus and Rest delivered 11.80 per cent and 11.62 per cent, respectively, for their equivalent options, in a year marked by sharp market volatility.
The country’s largest superannuation fund said on Thursday its Balanced super option returned 9.52 per cent, while its Choice Income retirement Balanced option also posted a solid return of 10.41 per cent.
AustralianSuper’s chief investment officer (CIO), Mark Delaney, said global and domestic equities were “significant drivers of returns” over the financial year, as AI and technology investments continued a three-year trend of boosting equity markets.
“We maintained our diversified portfolio while also capitalising on good growth in share markets,” he said, adding that the outcome for members was good considering the “complex investing environment”.
“It has been a challenging 12 months for active investors so being able to deliver this strong result for members is pleasing,” Delaney said. “It is important to remember super is a long-term investment and we always invest through short-term economic and geopolitical cycles.”
For its part, Cbus said on Thursday its Growth (MySuper) investment option delivered a 10.29 per cent return for members, while the Index Diversified investment option returned 11.68 per cent.
The fund’s CIO, Leigh Gavin, said the strong result in the year the fund also reached $100 billion in funds under management, showed the importance of members taking a long-term outlook.
“Underneath the strong numbers is a white-knuckle story of periods of wild volatility,” Gavin said.
“Following Liberation Day, we were looking at returns of 1.20 per cent for the financial year-to-date. Our diversified portfolio and internal investment teams positioned us well to withstand the year’s volatility and achieved an incredible outcome for members.”
While touting “another very strong year for equities both domestically and globally” like his AustraliaSuper counterpart, Gavin said returns were also strong across infrastructure and private credit as well as the commencement of a rebound in property.”
Also on Thursday, Rest reported a 9.85 per cent return for its MySuper default option in FY2024–25. Its Overseas Shares – Index option led the pack with a return of 16.39 per cent, followed by 14.93 per cent from its Sustainable Growth option. The fund’s Australian Shares-Indexed and Balanced-Index options delivered returns of 13.06 per cent and 11.58 per cent, respectively.
Much like its peers, the fund flagged listed shares as positive drivers of returns during the financial year.
Commenting on the result, Rest’s interim co-CIO, Kiran Singh, said: “The dominant US technology stocks continued their surge through to mid-March, before pulling back with the broader market following the US government’s tariff announcements.”
Singh noted that despite these announcements causing heightened volatility, both global and local markets recovered strongly.
“When it comes to listed markets, we continue to focus on investing in quality companies, a strategy which also helps see us through periods of high market and economic uncertainty,” he said.
The fund also highlighted the strong performance of the energy infrastructure sector, including renewables, as well as its overall well-diversified long-term approach.
Market volatility to continue
Looking forward, Gavin said Cbus anticipates investment market volatility will continue over the coming months.
“US tariff policy and global instability continue to be major themes for investors,” he said. “The range of possible returns in the US has never been wider. That doesn’t necessarily mean lower returns, but it does likely mean a wider range of plausible outcomes.”
Moreover, Gavin disclosed that Cbus had “slightly reduced” its US equities in 2024 largely on valuation grounds.
“We entered 2025 underweight US and overweight Europe, which benefited members,” Gavin said.
“Despite short-term risks, we remain optimistic about the US as a long-term investment destination.
“Investing in the US is more challenging now, but it’s still the world’s most innovative economy, with some of the world’s best companies and an unmatched ability to turn GDP growth into earnings growth, which is ultimately what drives members’ returns.”
While AustralianSuper did not disclose its level of investment in the US, earlier this year it was reported that the fund would not follow in the footsteps of its peers and would maintain its investment in the US.
Rest, for its part, earlier flagged the need to account for long-term political implications given its relatively young member base.
Speaking at an event earlier this year, CEO Vicki Doyle said: “Whilst we might be considering what are all the short-term issues of the geopolitics, my broader thought is that many of our members won’t retire till 2060, 2075, and the question that keeps us up is, ‘What world will they retire in?’”
She shared that an increasing number of members were reaching out to the fund, asking how they can protect their superannuation from the risks posed by US politics.
“We are planning their retirement income, taking their money today, giving it back to them in 40 years’ time, the world that is yet to be defined, so what we try think about is how do we best use that money in this short-term environment but not lose focus on decarbonisation, thinking about those bigger thematics of the world we’re creating,” Doyle said.
“We’ve got to react to those short-term aspects, but we’ve got to think very significantly about the long term.”
