TORONTO, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Montreal-based Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec said on Wednesday it generated positive gains of 5.6% in the first half of 2021, helped by performance from public stocks, infrastructure and real estate. Net assets in Canada’s second-largest pension fund were C$390 billion ($308.94 billion) as of June 30, up from C$365.5 billion on Dec. 31, 2020. Caisse’s results in the first six months of 2021 were driven primarily by real assets, mainly real estate and infrastructure, which made gains of 4.1%, while equities posted gains of 12.1% over the same period. The private equity return produced an additional 13.5%, underweighting in the traditional energy and financial institutions sectors, according to the results. Investments in fixed income, however, led to losses of 1.8% in the first six months of the year. “The global economic recovery still varies widely and reflects both the uneven progress on vaccinating populations and controlling the pandemic in different regions,” said Charles Emond, president and chief executive officer of Caisse. “We’re also facing conditions marked by a lot of uncertainty, especially with concerns around inflation and geopolitical tensions.” Emond added that over the past six months, Caisse increased exposure to “promising sectors” such as logistics and technology. ($1 = 1.2624 Canadian dollars) (Reporting by Maiya Keidan in Toronto and Allison Lampert in Montreal Editing by Matthew Lewis) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.