Pimco's El-Erian: We're halfway through a 'multiyear resetting of the global economy'

The world is in the middle of a “multiyear resetting of the global economy,” Mohamed El-Erian, PIMCO CEO and co-chief investment officer, said at a news conference in London today. He said it will take some time for investors to recognize and adjust to the “new normal” once it arrives. To adapt, PIMCO is focusing on how interest-rate risk is becoming more like credit risk, and how investors' focus on asset classes will change into a focus on risk factors, he said. For its part, PIMCO added nearly $280 billion in assets in 2009, a 40% increase over 2008, to bring its total assets under management to $985 billion, parent Allianz Global Investors said today. The bond manager reported $153 billion in net inflows for the year ended Dec. 31, with an added $125 billion coming from market returns. In 2008, inflows of $42 billion were more than offset by $43 billion in investment losses. PIMCO has grown its assets by 17% on average each year since 2002, according to AGI. This story first appeared in Pensions & Investments, an InvestmentNews sister publication