The Norwegian Wealth Fund lost $34 billion in the third quarter

The Norwegian Wealth Fund, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, announced a loss of 374 billion Norwegian crowns ($33.8 billion) in the third quarter due to the loss in value of all asset classes.

Investment performance for the fund, which manages $1.4 trillion in assets, was -2.1 percent in the third quarter. Although the fund’s performance was negative, it was 0.17 points above the benchmark it used for comparison.

WHY HARM?

While the Wealth Fund lost 3.3 percent of its value in unlisted real estate assets, the loss in unlisted renewable energy infrastructure was 2.4 percent.

In his assessment, fund manager Trond Grande stated: “The stock market had a weaker quarter compared to the previous two quarters. “In particular, technology, industrial and consumer-oriented sectors contributed negatively to profitability,” he said.

WHERE DOES THE WEALTH FUND INVEST?

The Norwegian Wealth Fund was created in the 1990s to invest Norway’s oil and gas revenues abroad. The fund holds about 1.5 percent of global stocks and tracks a benchmark index based largely on a framework set by parliament.

At the end of September, 70.6 percent of the fund was in stocks, 27.1 percent in bonds, 2.2 percent in real estate and 0.1 percent in renewable energy infrastructure.