Norway’s Central Bank Governor Oeystein Olsen is seen in his office at Norges Bank, Oslo, Norway February 13, 2020. NTB Scanpix/Hakon Mosvold Larsen via REUTERS
February 27, 2020
OSLO (Reuters) – Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest, made a 19.9% return on investment last year, earning a record 1.69 trillion Norwegian crowns ($180.49 billion), it said on Thursday.
The $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 central bank Governor Oeystein Olsen.
Last year’s return on investment amounted to almost $34,000 for each of the 5.3 million people living in Norway, and the overall value of the fund is now equivalent to about $207,000 for every man, woman and child.
The fund holds stakes in more than 9,000 companies globally, owning 1.5% of all listed stocks. It also invests in bonds and real estate.
Apple Inc <AAPL.O> and Microsoft Corp <MSFT.O> contributed the most to the fund’s return in 2019, followed by Nestle SA <NESN.S>.
($1 = 9.3633 Norwegian crowns)
(Reporting by Gwladys Fouche and Victoria Klesty, editing by Terje Solsvik)
