OSLO: The value of Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest, grew to a record 10 trillion Norwegian crowns ($1.09 trillion) on Friday, boosted by rising global stocks and the strength of the euro and dollar.
The fund reached the milestone as its government regulators grapple with strategy changes, including how to handle climate risk and a proposed large-scale shift of investments into the United States.
Built since 1996 to save petroleum revenues for future generations, the size of the fund has grown to almost three times that of Norway’s annual gross domestic product, far exceeding original projections.
“When the fund was set up, nobody thought it would pass 10,000 billion crowns. We were lucky to discover oil,” the fund’s chief executive, Yngve Slyngstad, said in a statement confirming the record.
“The return on the investments in global financial markets has been so high that it can be compared to having discovered oil again,” he said.
An update on the fund’s website showed the Government Pension Fund Global’s value reaching 10 trillion Norwegian crowns for the first time at 0857 GMT — more than $200,000 for every man, woman and child in Norway.
Commonly known as the oil fund and managed by a unit of the central bank, it invests close to 70 percent of funds in global equities and some 28 percent in a portfolio of fixed-income assets. Unlisted real estate holdings make up the rest.
On Aug. 27, the central bank proposed a shift that could ultimately move more than $100 billion out of European stock markets and into the United States, although such a move, if approved, could take years to complete.
The $750 billion equities portfolio has historically been heavily weighted toward Europe, aligning its fortunes with countries from which Norway draws most of its imports.
A move away from Europe would not be a verdict on the continent’s prospects, the fund insists, but would reflect a desire to apply neutral weights to global stock markets and thus make returns less dependent on a particular region.
Norway wealth fund grows to record $1.09 trillion
Norway wealth fund grows to record $1.09 trillion
- The fund reached the milestone as its government regulators grapple with strategy changes
- The size of the fund has grown to almost three times that of Norway’s annual gross domestic product
Arab food and beverage sector draws $22bn in foreign investment over 2 decades: Dhaman
JEDDAH: Foreign investors committed about $22 billion to the Arab region’s food and beverage sector over the past two decades, backing 516 projects that generated roughly 93,000 jobs, according to a new sectoral report.
In its third food and beverage industry study for 2025, the Arab Investment and Export Credit Guarantee Corp., known as Dhaman, said the bulk of investment flowed to a handful of markets. Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Morocco and Qatar attracted 421 projects — about 82 percent of the total — with capital expenditure exceeding $17 billion, or nearly four-fifths of overall investment.
Projects in those five countries accounted for around 71,000 jobs, representing 76 percent of total employment created by foreign direct investment in the sector over the 2003–2024 period, the report said, according to figures carried by the Kuwait News Agency.
“The US has been the region's top food and beverage investor over the past 22 years with 74 projects or 14 projects of the total, and Capex of approximately $4 billion or 18 percent of the total, creating more than 14,000 jobs,” KUNA reported.
Investment was also concentrated among a small group of multinational players. The sector’s top 10 foreign investors accounted for roughly 15 percent of projects, 32 percent of capital expenditure and 29 percent of newly created jobs.
Swiss food group Nestlé led in project count with 14 initiatives, while Ukrainian agribusiness firm NIBULON topped capital spending and job creation, investing $2 billion and generating around 6,000 jobs.
At the inter-Arab investment level, the report noted that 12 Arab countries invested in 108 projects, accounting for about 21 percent of total FDI projects in the sector over the past 22 years. These initiatives, carried out by 65 companies, involved $6.5 billion in capital expenditure, representing 30 percent of total FDI, and generated nearly 28,000 jobs.
The UAE led inter-Arab investments, accounting for 45 percent of total projects and 58 percent of total capital expenditure, the report added, according to KUNA.
The report also noted that the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Qatar topped the Arab ranking as the most attractive countries for investment in the sector in 2024, followed by Oman, Bahrain, Algeria, Morocco, and Kuwait.
Looking ahead, Dhaman expects consumer demand to continue rising. Food and non-alcoholic beverage sales across 16 Arab countries are projected to increase 8.6 percent to more than $430 billion by the end of 2025, equivalent to 4.2 percent of global sales, before exceeding $560 billion by 2029.
Sales are expected to remain highly concentrated geographically, with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, the UAE and Iraq accounting for about 77 percent of the regional total. By product category, meat and poultry are forecast to lead with sales of about $106 billion, followed by cereals, pasta and baked goods at roughly $63 billion.
Average annual per capita spending on food and non-alcoholic beverages in the region is projected to rise 7.2 percent to more than $1,845 by the end of 2025, approaching the global average, and to reach about $2,255 by 2029. Household spending on these products is expected to represent 25.8 percent of total expenditure in 13 Arab countries, above the global average of 24.2 percent.
Arab external trade in food and beverages grew more than 15 percent in 2024 to $195 billion, with exports rising 18 percent to $56 billion and imports increasing 14 percent to $139 billion. Brazil was the largest foreign supplier to the region, exporting $16.5 billion worth of products, while Saudi Arabia ranked as the top Arab exporter at $6.6 billion.
