Norway’s $1.4 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest, posted a loss of 374 billion Norwegian crowns ($33.80 billion) in the third quarter of 2023 as all asset classes fell in value, it said on Tuesday.
The fund’s return on investment was minus 2.1% for the July-September period, which was 0.17 percentage points stronger than the return on the fund’s benchmark index.
“The stock market saw a weaker quarter compared to the two previous quarters. It was particularly the tech, industrials and consumer discretionary sectors which contributed negatively to the return,” deputy CEO Trond Grande said in a statement.
The fund invests the Norwegian state’s revenues from oil and gas production in equities, bonds, property and renewable projects abroad.
It holds stakes in more than 9,200 companies globally, owning 1.5% of all listed stocks.
The fund had 70.6% of its value invested in equities by end-September, compared to 71.3% three months earlier.
Fixed income stood for 27.1% of the value, against 26.4% in three months earlier, while 2.2% was in unlisted real estate, against 2.3% three months earlier, and 0.1% in unlisted renewable energy infrastructure, against 0.1% before.
Reuters