Norwegian sovereign wealth fund (SWF) CEO Yngve Slyngstad speaks during an interview in Oslo, Norway, June 2, 2017. REUTERS
OSLO: Norway's US$1.1 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, made record returns on investment in the first quarter amid a surge in tech stocks, it said on Friday.
The fund earned 738 billion Norwegian crowns ($84.15 billion) for the January-March period, the highest amount it has ever recorded.
When measured in terms of the fund's international currency basket, the return for the quarter stood at 9.1 percent, beating its benchmark, it added.
"The first quarter was an exceptionally good quarter," fund CEO Yngve Slyngstad told reporters.
Apple Inc made the most positive contribution to the return in the first quarter, the fund said in the report, followed by Microsoft and Amazon .
The investments that made the most negative contributions were pharmaceutical firm AbbVie, bank Swedbank and U.S. consumer services firm CVS Health.
Overall, out of the 10 largest equity holdings in the fund, five of them are U.S. tech companies. The top three equity holdings are Apple, Microsoft and Alphabet.
The fund participated in the initial public offerings of tech firms Lyft and Weimob and clothing company Levi Strauss in the quarter, it said.
The fund invests Norway's revenues from oil and gas production in foreign stocks, bonds and real estate. - Reuters
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