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CPPIB chief executive officer Mark Wiseman. (Handout)The Canadian Press

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board is seeing a rising number of private equity opportunities and a decreasing number of appealing opportunities for its debt businesses, says CEO Mark Wiseman.

It's a reversal that has taken place over the last few quarters.

The fund, which on Friday posted a total investment return of 1.9 per cent for the quarter ended Sept. 30, has $28.1-billion, or 16.5 per cent of its portfolio, in private equity. Recent deals include a $1.1-billion (U.S.) deal for Tomkins' air distribution division, and an agreement to team up with BC Partners and the management of Suddenlink Communications to buy Suddenlink for $6.6-billion (U.S.) including debt and equity.

"We're seeing an increasing number of opportunities in private equity," Mr. Wiseman says.

On the other hand, he said that CPPIB's debt businesses have been reasonably slow in the last couple of quarters, certainly operating well behind last year's pace. In the hunt for yield investors have driven the yields on many assets to levels that don't compensate for risk.

"So we've really really slowed down deployment both in our private real estate debt area and in our private debt area," Mr. Wiseman says.

Stepping back, he's cautiously optimistic about the environment right now.

"I think in spite of worries about the fiscal cliff in the U.S., the data is actually starting to show signs of increasing growth in the U.S., and that will have a knock on effect in Canada," Mr. Wiseman says. The latest figures out of China are also encouraging, he adds.

"Overall, I'd say that we're more optimistic about the data than the sentiment."

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