National vector fabric wave flags of Norway and Singapore isolated on white background. 1 to 2 proportion.

It was reported yesterday (27 Feb) that Norway’s sovereign wealth fund made a 19.9% return on investment last year, earning a record 1.69 trillion Norwegian crowns (US$180 billion).

The US$1.1 trillion fund’s return for the year was stronger than that of its benchmark index, it added. “2019 has been a very good year for the fund … this is the greatest increase in value in a single year in the fund’s history,” said Norwegian central bank Governor Oeystein Olsen, who chairs the fund’s board.

Last year’s fantastic return on investment amounted to almost US$34,000 for each of its 5.3 million people living in Norway, and the overall value of the fund is now equivalent to about US$207,000 for every Norwegian citizens.

The fund invests in equity, bonds and real estate. It is now worth three times Norway’s annual GDP, and its returns provide vital funding for the country’s extensive social welfare programmes.

The CEO of the fund, Yngve Slyngstad, commented that Norway had moved from being “an oil nation to an oil fund nation”. He added that Norway now received more money in government coffers from the fund rather than oil in the North Sea.

“This is the second chapter. I think the first chapter was taking oil from the North Sea, and we executed that in a reasonably prudent fashion. Now it’s the second leg, and that is trying to manage those funds as smoothly as possible and so far it’s been quite adequately executed as well,” he said.

During Slyngstad’s tenure, the fund’s assets have increased five-fold.

Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund keeps things secret

In the case of Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC, it does not provide one-year returns. According to its website, GIC said one-year returns are “too short term in relation to GIC’s 20-year investment horizon”.

But it publishes 5-year and 10-year nominal rates of returns “in USD terms to reflect the ongoing medium-term investment performance of the portfolio. However, it does not publish the real rates of return.

It also does not disclose the size of the assets under its management, unlike the Norway’s sovereign wealth fund which now holds US$1.1 trillion worth of assets.

“The Government has explained that revealing the assets under management of GIC will, taken together with the published assets of MAS and Temasek, amount to publishing the full size of Singapore’s financial reserves,” it said.

“It is not in the national interest to publish the full size of the reserves for it will make it easier for markets to mount speculative attacks on the Singapore Dollar during periods of vulnerability.”

Strangely, the Norwegian government doesn’t seem to have such fears in speculators attacking its kroner (kr).

 

Subscribe
Notify of
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
You May Also Like

郑国明:当局仍使用传统手段 对抗如游击队般的新冠疫情

作者为人民之声党影子内阁成员郑国明(Cheang Kok Ming): 在处理流行病方面,成立跨部门工作小组来对付经常如游击队(guerrillas)一般捉摸不定的病毒,例如新冠病毒,是一种很传统、常规的做法。 显然,此次犹如“游击队”一般的新冠病毒已无声无息间踏上我们的“领土”,然而工作小组仍在忙于讨论应对不同情况的防御措施。 随着卫生部宣布我国进入橙色警戒(DORSCON),我们引来了《海峡时报》的重磅信息,“让我们为此尽一份力”,而非以往的“若身体安康,请勿戴上口罩”。 这似乎不如以往卫生局所呼吁,“不必在健康状态良好之下戴口罩”。此一消息是否显示,工作小组正在悄悄改变防御方针,将其改变为勤洗手、监测体温,以及不碰触自己的脸颊。 然而,工作委员会将警戒升级至橙色,亦充分表明,迄今为止所采取的常规策略,在对抗我们所看不见的“游击队”时显然失策。 将爆发警戒级别提升至橙色意味着,“疫情已对公共卫生从中度转移至高度影响。” “这已出现本地传染的病例,亦有可能在全国进行广泛性的传播,但局势仍然在控制范围内。” 总理李显龙表示,“过去几天,我们已发现一些无法追踪其感染源的相关病例。这令人忧心,因为说明病毒可能已开始在我们的社群中传播。” 他补充说道,“这也是为什么警戒级别从黄色升级至橙色。”…

DPM Teo Chee Hean to visit Hong Kong and US

Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) announced that Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and…