Recently, I checked my retirement saving whether I am still on track or not. Apparently, I am not on track. It could be that my target is too aggressive. Anyway, that’s not the point that I want to discuss now. Let’s discuss something more interesting. 
Currently, I have to retirement saving accounts:
- The first account was opened almost 3 years ago. It is in a form of mutual funds and managed by trust fund managers.
- The second account was just opened last year. It is managed by me. I put all my money into a Canadian index fund.
As of today, my first account shows negative return. In other words, I am losing money! How about the second one? Although it shows negative return at the beginning of this year, but it shows positive return now.
Many fund managers will say that retirement saving is for long-term. I should wait for a couple more years to see the result. It doesn’t make sense at all. It’s almost 3 years already. Why can’t they beat the benchmark index? Why should I pay higher management fees to lose money?
After reading some books and articles, I finally found out that most fund managers cannot beat the benchmark index. A recent article from GlobeInvestors.com reports the performance of Canadian fund managers in the first quarter of 2008:
Most professional money managers are having a heck of a time trying to top the benchmark. Fewer than 20 per cent of large-capitalization Canadian institutional fund managers beat the index in the first quarter, according to a survey by Russell Investments Canada.
I have to admit that I didn’t do enough research when I opened my first retirement account 3 years ago. I didn’t even notice that more than 80% fund managers cannot actually beat the benchmark index, such as S&P. I have learnt from my mistake now.
