The return on the Government Petroleum Fund in the first quarter of 2002 was 0.59 per cent measured by the currency basket that corresponds to the composition of the Fund’s benchmark portfolio. Measured in NOK, the return in the first quarter was -2.05 per cent.
The first quarter return on the ordinary equity portfolio (excluding the Environmental Fund) was 2.26 per cent measured against the benchmark portfolio’s currency basket. Share prices in the three main markets, the US, Europe and Japan, fell at the beginning of the quarter, but rose again towards the end of the quarter. Following the rise in interest rates in the US and Europe, a negative return of -0.63 per cent, measured in terms of the currency basket, was recorded for the fixed income portfolio.
The return on the Petroleum Fund’s ordinary portfolio in the first quarter of 2002 was 0.24 percentage point higher than the return on the benchmark portfolio defined by the Ministry of Finance.
The return on Environmental Fund in the first quarter was 1.30 per cent measured in terms of the benchmark portfolio currency basket, and -1.36 per cent measured in NOK.
On 31 January, NOK 12.1 billion was transferred to the Petroleum Fund’s international equity and fixed income portfolios, and a further NOK 12.2 billion was transferred on 28 February 2002, bringing the market value of the securities portfolio to NOK 625.0 billion at the end of the first quarter.