The total investments of Norway’s sovereign wealth fund in Turkish companies have reached $812 million as of the end of December, according to official data.
The world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, the Government Pension Fund of Norway, bought shares in four Turkish energy companies with investments totaling around $140 million by the end of 2020, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported, citing official figures from Norges Bank Investment Management.
The giant fund made its biggest energy investment in Ereğli Demir Çelik with $66 million (TL 490.07 million) followed by an investment of $35.57 million in Turkey’s refinery giant, Tüpraş. It holds a 0.98% share in Tüpraş and a 0.94% share in Ereğli.
Norges Bank, the fund manager, also invested $23.2 million in Kardemir Karabük Iron and Steel Industry (Kardemir), in which the fund has a 2.61% share.
In the energy sector, the fourth investment was made in Petkim, with $13.45 million. By the end of December 2020, the fund had invested in 34 different Turkish companies. The fund’s biggest overall investment was in private lender Akbank with $73.4 million, for 1.51% ownership.
It also acquired the largest ownership share in one of the biggest Turkish software companies, Logo, with a 5.05% stake.
The Nordic country’s fund also invested in a variety of sectors in Turkey, including communication services, glass and chemical production, furniture, and food and beverage companies.
Norway is Europe’s largest oil producer and the world’s third-largest natural gas exporter after Russia and Qatar.
The Norwegian government can spend only 3% of this per year, which is the expected real return on the fund, according to Norges Bank Investment Management, which was delegated by the country’s parliament as the fund manager.
The $1.3 trillion fund earned a return on its investment of 1.07 trillion Norwegian crowns ($122.7 billion) in 2020, the second-highest in its 25-year history.
The results were boosted by U.S. tech stocks, with Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Tesla contributing the most to its absolute return.
Founded in 1996, the Norwegian fund holds stakes in around 9,200 companies globally, owning 1.5% of all listed stocks. It also invests in bonds and unlisted real estate.
The fund holds the equivalent of $240,000 for every Norwegian man, woman and child.
At the end of the year, 72.8% of the fund’s investments were in stocks, 24.7% in bonds and 2.5% in unlisted real estate.