Latest news with #Norges Bank
The National
12-08-2025
- Business
- The National
Norway's sovereign fund expects more withdrawals from Israeli portfolio
Norway's $2 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, on Tuesday said that it expects more withdrawals from its Israeli portfolio. The announcement came one day after it said it was terminating contracts with external asset managers handling some of its investments in Israeli companies. It has also divested parts of its portfolio in Israel over the deteriorating humanitarian crisis in Gaza. 'We expect to divest from more companies,' the fund's chief executive, Nicolai Tangen, said at a press conference. The fund announced that it had sold its stakes of just over 2 per cent in Israeli jet engine group Bet Shemesh Engins Ltd (BSEL). It provides services to Israel's armed forces, including the maintenance of fighter jets. Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), an arm of Norway's central bank, which held stakes in 61 Israeli companies as of June 30, in recent days divested stakes in 11, including BSEL. It did not name the other companies. The fund began investing in BSEL in November 2023, about one month after the war in Gaza began, through an external investment manager, Mr Tangen said. The fund declined to give details of the external portfolio manager. BSEL was later reviewed as a high-risk stock in May. That change should have been quicker, Mr Tangen said, adding that NBIM should have had a tighter overview of these investments earlier. 'We should have been quicker in taking back control of the Israeli investments,' he said. The review began last week following media reports that the fund had built a stake in BSEL, which did not respond to requests for comment. NBIM had held quarterly meetings with Bet Shemesh Holdings, but the war in Gaza was not raised as a theme. 'We had discussions about their business in the United States, not about the war in Gaza,' Mr Tangen said, adding that the fund had rated BSEL as a 'medium risk' stock with regards to ethics concerns. In a press statement issued on Monday, the fund said that Norway's Finance Ministry had requested that it review its implementation of the management mandate of the fund, its investments in Israeli companies, and to propose new measures that it deems necessary. It has until August 20 to respond to a letter sent by the Finance Ministry. The fund said that the 11 Israeli companies that it had divested from since June were 'not in the equity benchmark index of the ministry'. Last week, NBIM decided to sell all investments in Israeli companies that are not in the equity benchmark. All investments in Israeli companies that had been managed externally would also be brought in-house. 'These measures were taken in response to extraordinary circumstances. The situation in Gaza is a serious humanitarian crisis. We are invested in companies that operate in a country at war, and conditions in the West Bank and Gaza have recently worsened,' Mr Tangen said in that statement. The fund, which invests the Norwegian state's revenue from oil and gas production, is one of the world's largest investors, owning on average 1.5 per cent of all listed stocks worldwide. It also invests in bonds, real estate and renewable energy projects. On Tuesday, it posted a 698 billion Norwegian crowns ($68.28 billion) profit for the first half of the year, earning an overall return of 5.7 per cent in line with its benchmark index. 'The result is driven by good returns in the stock market, particularly in the financial sector,' Mr Tangen said in a statement.
Yahoo
12-08-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Norway's $1.9 Trillion Fund Has Best Quarter Since 2023
(Bloomberg) -- Norway's sovereign wealth fund enjoyed its best quarter since late 2023, returning 6.4% in the second quarter, propelled by stock-market gains. Equities drove the results for the $1.9 trillion fund, at 8.45%, with unlisted infrastructure investments generating 8.1%, Norges Bank Investment Management said in a report on Tuesday. Fixed income and unlisted real estate had a small positive contribution. Sunseeking Germans Face Swiss Backlash Over Alpine Holiday Congestion New York Warns of $34 Billion Budget Hole, Biggest Since 2009 Crisis To Head Off Severe Storm Surges, Nova Scotia Invests in 'Living Shorelines' Chicago Schools' Bond Penalty Widens as $734 Million Gap Looms A New Stage for the Theater That Gave America Shakespeare in the Park Norway's wealth fund, the world's largest, owns about 1.5% of listed stocks globally. More than two thirds of the fund is in equities, all outside of Norway. A big chunk of its holdings are in the US, including tech companies such as Apple Inc, Microsoft Corp, Nvidia Corp., Alphabet Inc, Inc and Meta Platforms. The fund's first-half return was 5.7%, missing the benchmark it measures itself against by 5 basis points. European stocks gained the most, at 17.8%, versus just 1.4% for North American stocks. 'The result is driven by good returns in the stock market, particularly in the financial sector,' Chief Executive Officer Nicolai Tangen said. Financial firms returned 16.5% in the first six months of the year and accounted for 17% of the equity investments, NBIM said. The greatest contribution came from European banks, 'driven by expectations of increased public expenditure and further healthy profitability.' Other positive drivers included telecommunication companies and utilities, while health care performed the weakest, the fund said. A stronger currency weighed on the fund, contributing to a drop in its overall value by 0.8% to 19.6 trillion kroner ($1.9 trillion) at the end of the period from the year end. Founded in the early 1990s, NBIM invests the Nordic country's oil and gas revenues abroad for the benefit of future generations. It follows a benchmark index set by the finance ministry and has limited scope for active investing. On equities, it tracks the FTSE Global All Cap index with holdings in about 8,700 listed companies in 44 countries, while the fixed-income portion of the fund follows Bloomberg Barclays indexes, with 70% allocated to government bonds and 30% to corporate securities. The fund has been under pressure lately due to its investments in some companies contributing to Israel's war in Gaza. It's terminating all contracts with external managers in Israel following public outcry, and has divested from 21 Israeli firms in total since the war started. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Tangen said he has no plans to step down as CEO, while acknowledging the fund should have acted faster to take back management of those holdings. --With assistance from Stephen Treloar, Kari Lundgren and Rob Dawson. (Updates with 2Q returns, details in sector drivers, from first paragraph) Why It's Actually a Good Time to Buy a House, According to a Zillow Economist Bessent on Tariffs, Deficits and Embracing Trump's Economic Plan The Social Media Trend Machine Is Spitting Out Weirder and Weirder Results Klarna Cashed In on 'Buy Now, Pay Later.' Now It Wants to Be a Bank The Game Starts at 8. The Robbery Starts at 8:01 ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Al Jazeera
11-08-2025
- Business
- Al Jazeera
Norway wealth fund divests from several Israeli companies due to Gaza war
Norway's $2 trillion sovereign wealth fund says it is terminating all contracts with asset managers handling its Israeli investments and has divested parts of its portfolio. The announcement on Monday came after an urgent review launched last week after media reports said the fund had built a stake in an Israeli jet engine group that provides services to Israel's military, including the maintenance of fighter jets, as Israel's genocidal war on Gaza and the Palestinian population rages. The fund, an arm of Norway's central bank and the world's largest, held stakes in 61 Israeli companies as of June 30 but in recent days divested stakes in 11 of these, it said in a statement. 'We have now completely sold out of these positions,' the fund said, adding that it is continuing to review Israeli companies for potential divestments. 'These measures were taken in response to extraordinary circumstances. The situation in Gaza is a serious humanitarian crisis,' Nicolai Tangen, the CEO of Norges Bank Investment Management, said in a statement. 'We are invested in companies that operate in a country at war, and conditions in the West Bank and Gaza have recently worsened. In response, we will further strengthen our due diligence.' The fund stated that it has 'long paid particular attention to companies associated with war and conflict'. 'We constantly monitor companies' risk management related to conflict zones and respect for human rights,' it said. The Norwegian government began its review after Aftenposten, the country's leading newspaper, revealed that the fund had a stake in Bet Shemesh Engines Ltd (BSEL), which provides parts to Israeli fighter jets that are being deployed in the war on Gaza. Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store had said at the time that the investment was 'worrying'. The sovereign fund, which owns stakes in 8,700 companies worldwide, has sold its stakes in an Israeli energy company and a telecommunications group in the past year. In June, Norway's largest pension fund also decided to sever its ties with companies doing business with Israel. That same month, however, Norway's parliament rejected a proposal for the fund to divest from all companies with activities in occupied Palestinian territory. Several of Europe's biggest financial firms have cut back their links to Israeli companies or those with ties to the country, according to an analysis of filings by the Reuters news agency, as pressure mounts from activists and governments to end the war in Gaza. Last month, Francesca Albanese, the United Nations special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territory, called on countries to cut off all trade and financial ties with Israel, including a full arms embargo, and withdraw international support for what she termed an 'economy of genocide'. In a report titled From Economy of Occupation to Economy of Genocide, Albanese detailed 'the corporate machinery sustaining Israel's settler-colonial project of displacement and replacement of the Palestinians in the occupied territory'. The report singled out companies – including arms manufacturers, technology giants, heavy machinery companies and financial institutions – for their 'complicity' in Israel's repression of Palestinians from sustaining Israeli expansions onto occupied land to enabling the surveillance and killings of Palestinians.
