Norway’s wealth fund is to step in when oil wells run dry (KJETIL ALSVIK)

Oslo (AFP) – Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the largest in the world, more than covered the losses its suffered last year with a record performance in the first three months of this year.

The fund, which receives the state’s oil revenues to manage in order to finance Norway’s generous welfare state when its oil and gas wells run dry, earned a return of 9.1 percent on its investments in the first quarter.

At 738 billion kroner ($84 billion) “this is the fund’s best quarterly return measured in kroner ever”, its manager Yngve Slyngstad said in a statement.

The result more than compensated for a loss of 485 billion kroner the fund, managed by the Norwegian central bank, registered last year due to weak global stock markets.

“As a major equity investor we must be prepared for large fluctuations in the fund’s market value in line with developments in global stock markets,” added Slyngstad.

The total value of the fund stood at just above $1 trillion at the end of March.

Disclaimer: Validity of the above story is for 7 Days from original date of publishing. Source: AFP.