The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
State-run pension fund Social Security System (SSS) reported its revenues jumped 8.34 percent to P160 billion as of the end of November last year.
Based on SSS’ unaudited financial statement, revenues for the January to November period growth was on the back of the P10.51 billion increase in member’s contribution and higher investment income.
The end-November 2016 revenues was P12.42 billion, higher than the P147.70 billion recorded in the same 11-month period in 2015.
Broken down, members’ contribution grew to P131.28 billion investments and other income increased to P28.74 billion.
“One of our goals for the pension fund this year is to expand our membership. We would also like to retain the current membership number, as it comprises more than 82 percent of our total revenue income,” SSS President Emmanuel Dooc said.
Expenditures for the January to November period in 2016, likewise, increased by 18.39 percent to P131.06 billion from the P110.70 billion recorded in 2015 amid the 25.46 percent-increase in disbursements in retirement benefits.
Expenditures for retirement, death and disability stood at P72.56 billion, P36.21 billion and P4.17 billion, respectively. Disbursements for maternity was recorded at P4.84 billion; for funeral grant at P3.3 billion; sickness at P2.08 billion; medical services at P12.99 million; and rehabilitation services at P1.48 million.
Expenses in the January to November 2016 period in 2016 pulled the net revenue for the 11-month period in 2016 to drop 21.74 percent to P28.96 billion from the P37 billion in the year before.
Meanwhile, as of November 2016, the pension fund’s assets, liabilities and reserves stood at P473.63 billion, P13.54 billion and P460.09 billion, respectively.
Investment level for the said period was recorded at P456.23 billion as average return of investment stood at 7 percent.
SSS has been urging Congress to pass its charter amendments to provide the pension fund greater investment flexibility to bolster its generation of needed revenues for granting higher benefits for members.
Social Security Commission’s (SSC) Chairman Dean Amado D. Valdez said that SSS investment capabilities, based on the provisions under the Social Security Act of 1997, are limited amid current market trends.
“Aside from expanding our investment portfolio, we seek the amendment of the conservative provisions of the SSS charter particularly on the investing capacities of the Commission,” he said.
The SSS charter limits the powers of the Commission to invest its reserve fund. At present, SSS could only invest in private securities, housing, real estate, short and medium-term member loans, government financial institutions and corporations, infrastructure projects, foreign currency denominated investments, and any particular industry that the Commission deems profitable.
The SSS aggressively pushes for direct capital infusion of the pension funds to tollway constructions under the Private-Public Partnership (PPP) to generate lifetime income, and to provide more meaningful benefits to its members.