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6.A. - Page 2 of 44 <br />ANALYSIS <br />The attached investment report indicates that as of June 30, 2019, funds (excluding cash with fiscal agents) <br />from all sources were producing an annual earnings rate of 2.41%. The market value of the portfolio as of <br />June 30 was $286,840,802. This includes the funds held in the San Mateo County Treasurer's investment <br />pool and with the State Treasurer's investment pool. All of these investments comply with the City's <br />investment policy. The City has sufficient liquid resources available to meet expenditure requirements for <br />the next six months. <br />The portion of the City's portfolio that is managed by PFM has a total market value at quarter end of <br />$162,166,077. As of June 30, the portfolio was earning an annual yield at cost of 2.42%, and the yield at <br />market was 1.9%. The average maturity of the portfolio was 2.78 years. <br />The market benchmark, selected with consultation from the City Council Finance/Audit Subcommittee, is <br />the Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BofA ML) 1-5 year U.S. Treasury Index. Below is a table summarizing <br />the City's portfolio performance compared to the benchmark, for the period ending June 30, 2019. <br />The portfolio strategy of keeping the duration in line with the benchmark despite the inverted yield curve <br />(where long-term yield rates are lower than short-term rates) drove strong market -value returns across <br />most fixed-income sectors, as market prices on those tend to rise as yields fall. U.S. Treasury yields fell for <br />a third consecutive quarter, with maturities beyond one year falling 40-50 basis points. As of June 30, <br />yields on the majority of benchmark U.S. Treasury Maturities were near 18 -month lows. The S&P 500 <br />returned 4.3% for the second quarter and 17.4% for the first half of 2019, marking its best first-half <br />performance in over 20 years. <br />The Federal Reserve (Fed) kept the Fed funds rate unchanged at its May and June meetings, but dropped <br />the target rate by 25 basis points at its July meeting due to implications of global developments (such as <br />the trade tensions with China and lower global growth), as well as slower GDP growth and below target <br />inflation in the second quarter. The market now widely expects multiple rate cuts in the second half of <br />2019. This is a significant change from a year ago when the market held an expectation of three to four <br />interest rate increases in 2019. The anticipated reduction of rates will have a direct impact on the interest <br />earnings in the City's portfolio, as newer investments will earn less than the current holdings. Fed Chair <br />Jerome Powell affirmed that the Fed will "act as appropriate to sustain the expansion," and acknowledged <br />that acting preemptively to cut rates in light of a possible slowdown may be best for the economy. <br />Looking ahead, PFM's risk mitigation strategy for the City's portfolio includes continued diversification in <br />the investment grade sectors and keeping distribution of maturities and duration in line with the <br />benchmark. Because of the outlook for slower economic growth, PFM will favor higher -grade fixed- <br />income sectors including callable agencies for their incremental yield (although the downward move in <br />City of Redwood City 1017 Middlefield Road, Redwood City, CA. 94063 Tel: 650-780-7000 www.redwoodcity.org <br />6 <br />