Norges Bank Investment Management claims compliance with the Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS®) and has prepared and presented this report in compliance with the GIPS standards. We have been independently verified for the periods 31 December 1997 through 31 December 2012. The verification reports are available upon request.
Verification assesses whether (1) the firm has complied with all the composite construction requirements of the GIPS standards on a firm-wide basis and (2) the firm’s policies and procedures are designed to calculate and present performance in compliance with the GIPS standards. Verification does not ensure the accuracy of any specific composite presentation.
Verification
NBIM has been independently verified for the period 31 December 1997 through 31 December 2012. The third party verifier’s report is available here
The firm
NBIM as the firm is the investment management division of Norges Bank – the central bank of Norway. NBIM manages the Government Pension Fund Global (Pension Fund) and the major part of Norges Bank’s foreign exchange reserves (Reserves Fund).
Firm assets
Total firms assets are defined as the sum of the Government Pension Fund Global and the investment portfolio of Norges Bank’s foreign exchange reserves. The money market portfolio of Norges Bank’s foreign exchange reserves is managed by the Market Operations and Analysis Department of the Norges Bank Monetary Policy division and is not part of firm assets. On close of 31 December 2010 the Government Petroleum Insurance Fund was terminated and the assets were transferred to the Pension Fund. On June 1 2012, the management of the Petroleum Buffer portfolio was transferred to Norges Bank Markets and Banking services division and hence the portfolio is not part of Firm assets year-end 2012.
Calculation methodology
NBIM implements a time-weighted monthly rate of return methodology in the return calculations. The assets’ fair value is determined on the day of an external cash flow and interim returns are geometrically linked. NBIM does not operate with a minimum asset level. NBIM has not adopted a significant cash flow policy. All portfolios are accounted for in the composite. All composite returns are calculated net of non-reclaimable withholding taxes on dividend, interest and capital gains. Withholding taxes are recognized when incurred. NBIM uses accrual accounting for interest income and dividends.
Assets and liabilities are reported on a fair value basis and in Norwegian kroner (NOK). Fair value is the estimated realisable value of an asset or the estimated cost of settling a liability in an arm’s length transaction between well-informed and willing parties. The sources of valuation and pricing follow the NBIM pricing hierarchy which is well aligned with the GIPS standards’ recommendation. Performance is reported in terms of an international currency basket corresponding to the currency composition of the fund’s benchmark portfolio. This measure reflects the actual performance of the Fund and isolates the effects of NOK fluctuations versus the currencies in which the benchmark is invested. Movements in the NOK do not affect the international purchasing power of the fund.
Carve-out
The asset class composites constitute carve-outs from the total portfolio. Cash is allocated to each carve-out separately. For each annual period presented in the equity and fixed income composites (applies to Pension Fund and Reserves fund) and the real estate composite (applies to Pension Fund), the share of composite assets represented by carve-outs equals 100%.
Additional information
NBIM’s list of composite descriptions is available upon request. Policies for valuing portfolios, calculating performance, and preparing compliant presentations are available upon request.
A large extent of information is available at our website www.nbim.no.