Tilt and win: how the NZ Super Fund turned Trump's tariff turmoil into gains

The NZ Super Fund introduced strategic tilting in 2009. It used the strategy to ride through market volatility thanks to US President Donald Trump's tariff regime. (Image: Getty)

Rebecca Stevenson

Tue, 09 Sep 2025

While United States President Donald Trump’s Liberation Day tariff bombshell wiped trillions from stock markets, the New Zealand Superannuation Fund was making moves and cashing in.The Super Fund reported its annual result on Monday, which included a $745 million active investment windfall it banked over and above what it could have earned if it had invested passively. Chief executive Jo Townsend said the main contributor was the fund’s strategic tilting programme, which aims to invest more in assets that seem cheap a...

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