Business
Norway's $1.3 Trillion Sovereign Wealth Fund To Divest Russian Assets Which Account For 0.2% Of Its Portfolio
Johan Sverdrup field in the North Sea. (Photo: Ole Jørgen Bratland)
Norway's $1.3 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, announced that it will divest Russian assets following the invasion of Ukraine, the Norwegian prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre announced earlier this week.
"We have decided to freeze the fund's investments and have begun a process of selling out (of Russia)," Stoere told a news conference.
"Russia's attack on Ukraine has challenged Europe's security in a way we have not seen since the Second World War," Støre added.
The fund's Russian assets, comprising of shares in 47 companies as well as government bonds, were worth $2.83 billion at the end of 2021. It accounts for meagre 0.2% of its portfolio. The fund is invested in at least three of Russia's biggest companies - Gazprom, Sberbank and Lukoil.
The Norges Bank Investment Management fund grew even larger in 2021 as it earned a whopping $180 billion thanks to its investments in US stocks. The gains represented a return of 14.5 percent.
The fund — which the country funnels its oil revenues into — ended the year with a massive total value of $1.3 trillion. Stocks, which accounted for 72 percent of the total portfolio at the end of December, gained 20.8 percent, driven in particular by the US and the energy, finance and technology sectors.
The fund’s bond investments account for 25.4 percent of assets.
The fund has stakes in more than 9,000 companies.
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