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CURRENT INVESTMENT STRATEGY: <br /> The need for investing into the trust fund caused reinvestment activity to slow down in the <br /> quarter. Staff continues to invest in a mix of fixed income securities as excess cash is available <br /> while continuing to try and match maturities with future cash needs. <br /> The Federal reserve has continuously been increasing interest rates as we had anticipated, at this <br /> juncture we anticipate one more rate hike towards the end of the year. Our strategy of purchasing <br /> callable securities over the last 2 years has paid off handsomely as they are now behaving as <br /> bullets and providing a higher yield to the portfolio. We are deliberately not going too long on <br /> the maturity curve due to the current rate environment, in order to provide additional income and <br /> structure to the portfolio. In our current strategy we have been adding highly discounted callable <br /> securities (low coupon, below par purchase price) as a protection to call risk while at the same <br /> time gaining the extra pickup offered on yield. <br /> The yield curve currently is very flat on the longer end with little to no award for going long. <br /> This can be interpreted in different ways, some of which could indicate a heavier concentration <br /> on the short end of the curve while other indicators could be a possibility of a recession in the 12 <br /> to 18-month horizon. Stock markets are choppy and PE ratios are at all times highs that translates <br /> into higher risk. While we are well into 8 years of a recovery and upward moving economy <br /> caution needs to be taken in these uncertain times as most prior market cycles have revolved in <br /> the 5 to 10-year range. <br /> Additionally, staff is balancing the portfolio's credit exposure to pick up incremental yields <br /> while complying with the City's investment policy's mandate of safety, liquidity, and yield. This <br /> strategy is expected to be continuously monitored during FY 2018-19. <br />