Norway oil fund loses 18b euros in first half

OSLO, Aug 18 (AFP): Norway's huge sovereign wealth fund, the world's biggest, lost 188 billion kroner (18 billion euros, $21 billion) in the first half of the year as the global economy reels from the Covid-19 pandemic, the central bank said Tuesday.

The fund, in which the Norwegian state's oil revenues are invested, was hit by plummeting share prices, with stocks accounting for 69.6 per cent of its investments. Its share portfolio posted a negative return of 6.8 per cent in the first six months of the year.

At the end of June, the fund was valued at 10.4 trillion kroner (989 billion euros), up from the 9.98 trillion kroner seen at the end of the first quarter.

"The year started with optimism, but the outlook of the equity market quickly turned when the coronavirus started to spread globally," the fund's deputy chief executive, Trond Grande, said in a statement.

"However, the sharp stock market decline of the first quarter was limited by a massive monetary and financial policy response," he added.

Real estate investments, which represent 2.8 per cent of the portfolio, also posted a negative return, of 1.6 per cent, while bond investments, which account for 27.6 per cent of assets, posted a gain of 5.1 per cent.