Norway’s $1.14t sovereign wealth fund reports positive return in third quarter

Norway’s Government Pension Fund Global, the largest sovereign wealth fund in the world, has recorded a 4.3 percent return in the third quarter of 2020, representing NOK412 billion ($44 billion).

Norges Bank Investment Management, which manages the SWF, reported the fund’s overall return was 3 basis points lower than the return on the benchmark index. Investments in unlisted real estate returned 0.9 percent.

“The financial markets were still influenced by uncertainty related to the coronavirus,” said Nicolai Tangen, CEO of Norges Bank Investment Management. “Regardless, equity markets returned well, mostly due to strong performance in the technology sector in [the] U.S.”

The positive return follows on the heels of a negative return of -3.4 percent in the first half of 2020.

The fund had a value of NOK 10.61 trillion ($1.14 trillion) as of Sept. 30, of which 2.7 percent was invested in unlisted real estate.