The Government Pension Fund of Norway
Encyclopedia
The Government Pension Fund of Norway comprises two entirely separate sovereign wealth fund
Sovereign wealth fund
A sovereign wealth fund is a state-owned investment fund composed of financial assets such as stocks, bonds, property, precious metals or other financial instruments. Sovereign wealth funds invest globally. Some of them have grabbed attention making bad investments in several Wall Street financial...

s owned by the Government of Norway:
  • The Government Pension Fund - Global (formerly The Government Petroleum Fund)
  • The Government Pension Fund - Norway (formerly The National Insurance Scheme Fund)

The Government Pension Fund - Global

The Government Pension Fund - Global is a fund
Pension fund
A pension fund is any plan, fund, or scheme which provides retirement income.Pension funds are important shareholders of listed and private companies. They are especially important to the stock market where large institutional investors dominate. The largest 300 pension funds collectively hold...

 into which the surplus
Economic surplus
In mainstream economics, economic surplus refers to two related quantities. Consumer surplus or consumers' surplus is the monetary gain obtained by consumers because they are able to purchase a product for a price that is less than the highest price that they would be willing to pay...

 wealth
Wealth
Wealth is the abundance of valuable resources or material possessions. The word wealth is derived from the old English wela, which is from an Indo-European word stem...

 produced by Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

 petroleum
Petroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...

 income is deposited. The fund changed name in January 2006 from its previous name The Petroleum Fund of Norway. The fund is commonly referred to as The Oil Fund (Norwegian: Oljefondet). As of the valuation in June 2011, it was the largest pension fund in the world, although it is not actually a pension fund as it derives its financial backing from oil profits and not pension contributions. As of 31 December 2010 its total value is NOK
Norwegian krone
The krone is the currency of Norway and its dependent territories. The plural form is kroner . It is subdivided into 100 øre. The ISO 4217 code is NOK, although the common local abbreviation is kr. The name translates into English as "crown"...

 3,077 billion ($525 bn), holding 1 per cent of global equity markets. With 1.78 per cent of European stocks, it is said to be the largest stock owner in Europe.

The purpose of the petroleum fund is to invest parts of the large surplus generated by the Norwegian petroleum sector
Petroleum industry
The petroleum industry includes the global processes of exploration, extraction, refining, transporting , and marketing petroleum products. The largest volume products of the industry are fuel oil and gasoline...

, generated mainly from taxes of companies, but also payment for license to explore as well as the State's Direct Financial Interest
State's Direct Financial Interest
State's Direct Financial Interest is a portfolio of the Norwegian government's directly owned exploration and production licenses for petroleum and natural gas on the Norwegian continental shelf...

 and dividends from partly state-owned Statoil
Statoil
Statoil ASA is a Norwegian petroleum company established in 1972. It merged with Norsk Hydro in 2007 and was known as StatoilHydro until 2009, when the name was changed back to Statoil ASA. The brand Statoil was retained as a chain of fuel stations owned by StatoilHydro...

. Current revenue from the petroleum sector is estimated to be at its peak period and to decline over the next decades. The Petroleum Fund was established in 1990 after a decision by the country's legislature to counter the effects of the forthcoming decline in income and to smooth out the disrupting effects of highly fluctuating oil prices.

Management and size

The fund is managed by Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), a part of the Norwegian Central Bank on behalf of the Ministry of Finance. It is currently the largest pension fund in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

 and is larger than the California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 public-employees pension fund (CalPERS
CalPERS
The California Public Employees' Retirement System or CalPERS is an agency in the California executive branch that "manages pension and health benefits for more than 1.6 million California public employees, retirees, and their families"...

), the largest public pension fund in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The Norwegian Ministry of Finance forecasts that the fund will reach NOK 4,334.3 billion ($717 bn) by the end of 2014 and NOK 6,065.7 billion ($1,003 bn) by the end of 2019. In a parliamentary White Paper in April 2011 the Norwegian Ministry of Finance forecast that the 2030 value of the fund would be NOK 7,400 billion ($1263 bn). A worst case scenario for the fund value in 2030 was forecast at NOK 2,667 billion ($455 bn) and a best case scenario at NOK 19,556 billion ($3,337 bn).

Since 1998 the fund has been allowed to invest up to 40 per cent of its portfolio in the international stock market
Stock market
A stock market or equity market is a public entity for the trading of company stock and derivatives at an agreed price; these are securities listed on a stock exchange as well as those only traded privately.The size of the world stock market was estimated at about $36.6 trillion...

. In 2007 the Ministry decided to raise the stock portion to 60 per cent. This was achieved in June 2009. The Norwegian Government has planned that up to 5 per cent of the fund should be invested in real estate, starting in 2010. A specific policy for the real estate investments was suggested in a report the Swiss Partners Group
Partners Group
Partners Group is a global private markets management firm with over EUR 20 billion in investment programs under management in private equity, private debt, private real estate, private infrastructure and absolute return strategies...

 wrote for the Norwegian Ministry of Finance.

Debate

Due to the large size of the fund relative to the low number of people living in Norway (4.9 million people in 2010), the Petroleum Fund has become a hot political issue, dominated by three main issues:
  • Whether the country should use more of the petroleum revenues for the state budget
    State budget of Norway
    The State budget of Norway is a budget passed by the Norwegian legislature, Storting, each year. It accumulates all income and expenses for the Government of Norway. The document defines the taxes to be collected, and what expenses will be accomplished....

     instead of saving the funds for the future. The main matter of debate is to what degree increased government spending will increase inflation
    Inflation
    In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...

    .
  • Whether the high level of exposure (around 60 per cent in 2008) to the highly volatile
    Volatility (finance)
    In finance, volatility is a measure for variation of price of a financial instrument over time. Historic volatility is derived from time series of past market prices...

    , and therefore risky
    Financial risk
    Financial risk an umbrella term for multiple types of risk associated with financing, including financial transactions that include company loans in risk of default. Risk is a term often used to imply downside risk, meaning the uncertainty of a return and the potential for financial loss...

    , stock market is financially safe. Others claim that the high differentiation and extreme long term of the investments will dilute the risk and that the state is losing considerable amounts of money due to the low investment percentage in the stock market.
  • Whether the investment policy of the Petroleum Fund is ethical
    Ethics
    Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...

    .

The Ethical Council

Part of the investment policy debate is related to the discovery of several cases of investment by The Petroleum Fund in highly controversial companies, involved in businesses such as arms
Weapon
A weapon, arm, or armament is a tool or instrument used with the aim of causing damage or harm to living beings or artificial structures or systems...

 production and tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...

. The Petroleum Fund’s Advisory Council on Ethics was established 19 November 2004 by royal decree
Decree
A decree is a rule of law issued by a head of state , according to certain procedures . It has the force of law...

. Accordingly, the Ministry of Finance issued a new regulation on the management of the Government Petroleum Fund which also includes ethical guidelines.

On 19 January 2010 the Ministry of Finance announced that 17 tobacco companies had been excluded from the fund. The total divestement from these companies was USD 2bn (NOK 14.2bn), making it the largest divestment caused by ethical recommendations in the history of the fund.

Excluded companies

The following companies have been excluded from the Government Pension Fund of Norway due to activities in breach of the Ethical Guidelines
Company HQ Date of exclusion Reason Divestment (USD)
Africa Israel Investments
Africa Israel Investments
Africa Israel Investments Ltd. - AFI GROUP - is an international holding and investment company based in Yehud, Israel.AFI Group consists of several private and public companies active in areas such as real estate, construction, infrastructure, manufacturing, tourism and leisure.The company’s...

24 August 2010 Violation of the Geneva Convention in occupied Palestinian territory by being involved in developing settlements 1.2m
Alliance One International Inc. 19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 0.9m
Alliant Techsystems Inc
Alliant Techsystems
Alliant Techsystems Inc., most commonly known by its ticker symbol, ', is one of the largest aerospace and defense companies in the United States with more than 18,000 employees in 22 states, Puerto Rico and internationally, and 2010 revenues in excess of an estimated...

30 Jun 2005 Production of components for cluster munitions. N/A
Altria Group Inc. 19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 131m
Barrick Gold Corporation
Barrick Gold
Barrick Gold Corporation is the largest pure gold mining company in the world, with its headquarters in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; and four regional business units located in Australia, Africa, North America and South America...

30 Jan 2009 Extensive environmental degradation related to the Porgera Gold Mine
Porgera Gold Mine
The Porgera Gold Mine is a large gold and silver mining operation in Enga province, Papua New Guinea , located at the head of the Porgera Valley. The mine is situated in the rain forest covered highlands at an altitude of 2,200 to 2,700 m, in a region of high rainfall, landslides, and frequent...

 in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...

 
245m
BAE Systems Plc.
BAE Systems
BAE Systems plc is a British multinational defence, security and aerospace company headquartered in London, United Kingdom, that has global interests, particularly in North America through its subsidiary BAE Systems Inc. BAE is among the world's largest military contractors; in 2009 it was the...

11 Oct 2005 Production of nuclear missiles for the French Air Force through the company MBDA
MBDA
MBDA is a missile developer and manufacturer with operations in France, Britain, Germany, Italy, and the United States. It was formed by a merger of Aérospatiale-Matra Missiles , Finmeccanica and Matra BAe Dynamics in December 2001. In 2003 the company had 10,000 employees...

.
N/A
Boeing Company
Boeing
The Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...

11 Oct 2005 Maintenance of ICBMs for the U.S. Air Force. N/A
British American Tobacco BHD
British American Tobacco
British American Tobacco p.l.c. is a global tobacco company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world’s second largest quoted tobacco company by global market share , with a leading position in more than 50 countries and a presence in more than 180 countries...

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 9.4m
British American Tobacco Plc.
British American Tobacco
British American Tobacco p.l.c. is a global tobacco company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world’s second largest quoted tobacco company by global market share , with a leading position in more than 50 countries and a presence in more than 180 countries...

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 683m
Danya Cebus 24 August 2010 Violation of the Geneva Convention in occupied Palestinian territory by being involved in developing settlements N/A
European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company EADS N.V.
EADS
The European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company N.V. is a global pan-European aerospace and defence corporation and a leading defence and military contractor worldwide...



30 Jun 2005 Production of nuclear missiles for the French Air Force through the company MBDA
MBDA
MBDA is a missile developer and manufacturer with operations in France, Britain, Germany, Italy, and the United States. It was formed by a merger of Aérospatiale-Matra Missiles , Finmeccanica and Matra BAe Dynamics in December 2001. In 2003 the company had 10,000 employees...

 EADS was initially excluded because it produced cluster munitions components, but the company later stopped such production. The exclusion was upheld due to the company's production of nuclear missiles.
N/A
Elbit Systems
Elbit Systems
Elbit Systems Ltd. is one of the world's largest defense electronics manufacturers and integrators. Established in 1967, and based in Haifa, Israel, Elbit employs 11,000 people worldwide....

3 Sep 2009 Supply of surveillance systems for the Israeli West Bank barrier
Israeli West Bank barrier
The Israeli West Bank barrier is a separation barrier being constructed by the State of Israel along and within the West Bank. Upon completion, the barrier’s total length will be approximately...

 
5.0m
Finmeccanica Sp.A.
Finmeccanica
Finmeccanica S.p.A. is an Italian conglomerate. Finmeccanica is the second largest industrial group and the largest of the hi-tech industrial groups based in Italy. It works in the fields of defence, aerospace, security, automation, transport and energy...

11 Oct 2005 Production of nuclear missiles for the French Air Force through the company MBDA
MBDA
MBDA is a missile developer and manufacturer with operations in France, Britain, Germany, Italy, and the United States. It was formed by a merger of Aérospatiale-Matra Missiles , Finmeccanica and Matra BAe Dynamics in December 2001. In 2003 the company had 10,000 employees...

.
N/A
Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.
Freeport-McMoRan
Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc., often called simply Freeport, is the world's lowest-cost copper producer and one of the world's largest producers of gold...

28 Mar 2006 Serious environmental damage. 17.2m
GenCorp Inc
GenCorp
GenCorp is an American technology-based manufacturer based in Rancho Cordova, California. Established in 1915, GenCorp was formerly the General Tire and Rubber Company....

15 Nov 2007 Production of nuclear weapons. N/A
General Dynamics Corporation
General Dynamics
General Dynamics Corporation is a U.S. defense conglomerate formed by mergers and divestitures, and as of 2008 it is the fifth largest defense contractor in the world. Its headquarters are in West Falls Church , unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia, in the Falls Church area.The company has...

30 Jun 2005 Production of components for cluster munitions. N/A
Grupo Carso SAB de CV Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

15 Feb 2011 Production of tobacco. N/A
Gudang Garam tbk pt 19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 0
Hanwha Corporation
Hanwha
Hanwha Group is one of the largest business conglomerate in South Korea. Founded in 1952 as Korea Explosives Inc. , the group has grown into a large multi-profile business conglomerate, with diversified holdings stretching from explosives, their original business, to retail to financial...

15 May 2007 Production of cluster munitions. 1.2m
Honeywell International Inc.
Honeywell
Honeywell International, Inc. is a major conglomerate company that produces a variety of consumer products, engineering services, and aerospace systems for a wide variety of customers, from private consumers to major corporations and governments....

11 Oct 2005 Simulations of nuclear explosions. N/A
Imperial Tobacco Group Plc
Imperial Tobacco
Imperial Tobacco is a global tobacco company headquartered in Bristol, United Kingdom. It is the world’s fourth-largest cigarette company measured by market share , and the world's largest producer of cigars, fine-cut tobacco and tobacco papers...

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 347m
ITC Ltd. 19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 48m
Japan Tobacco Inc.
Japan Tobacco
, abbreviated JT, is a cigarette manufacturing company. It is part of the Nikkei 225 index. In 2009 the company was listed at number 312 on the Fortune 500 list. The company is headquartered in Toranomon, Minato, Tokyo. The international headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland.-History:The company...

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 210m
KT&G Corp.
KT&G
KT&G is the leading tobacco company in South Korea with annual sales over $2 billion USD...

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 16m
L3 Communications Holdings Inc
L-3 Communications
L-3 Communications Holdings, Inc. is a company that supplies command and control, communications, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems and products, avionics, ocean products, training devices and services, instrumentation, space, and navigation products. Its customers include...

30 Jun 2005 Production of components for cluster munitions. N/A
Lockheed Martin Corp
Lockheed Martin
Lockheed Martin is an American global aerospace, defense, security, and advanced technology company with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, in the Washington Metropolitan Area....

30 Jun 2005 Production of components for cluster munitions. N/A
Lorillard Inc.
Lorillard Tobacco Company
Lorillard Tobacco Company is an American tobacco company marketing cigarettes under the brand names Newport, Maverick, Old Gold, Kent, True, Satin, and Max. Lorillard is a member of the National Black Chamber of Commerce.- History :...

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 42m
Northrop Grumman Corp.
Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American global aerospace and defense technology company formed by the 1994 purchase of Grumman by Northrop. The company was the fourth-largest defense contractor in the world as of 2010, and the largest builder of naval vessels. Northrop Grumman employs over...

11 Oct 2005 Maintenance of ICBMs for the U.S. Air Force. N/A
Philip Morris Int. Inc.
Philip Morris International
Philip Morris International is an international tobacco company, with products sold in over 160 countries. In 2007, it held a 15.6% share of the international cigarette market outside of the USA and reported revenues net of excise taxes of $22.8 billion and operating income of $8.9 billion.Until...

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 476m
Philip Morris Cr AS
Philip Morris International
Philip Morris International is an international tobacco company, with products sold in over 160 countries. In 2007, it held a 15.6% share of the international cigarette market outside of the USA and reported revenues net of excise taxes of $22.8 billion and operating income of $8.9 billion.Until...

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 2.7m
Poongsan Corporation 30 Sep 2006 Production of cluster munition. 1.2m
Raytheon Company
Raytheon
Raytheon Company is a major American defense contractor and industrial corporation with core manufacturing concentrations in weapons and military and commercial electronics. It was previously involved in corporate and special-mission aircraft until early 2007...

30 Jun 2005 Production of components for cluster munitions. N/A
Reynolds American Inc.
Reynolds American
Reynolds American, Inc. is the second-largest tobacco company in the United States. Its holdings include R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, American Snuff Company , Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company and Niconovum AB...

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 36m
Rio Tinto Group
Rio Tinto Group
The Rio Tinto Group is a diversified, British-Australian, multinational mining and resources group with headquarters in London and Melbourne. The company was founded in 1873, when a multinational consortium of investors purchased a mine complex on the Rio Tinto river, in Huelva, Spain from the...

28 Apr 2008 Severe environmental damage 882m
Samling Global Ltd. Malaysia 23 Aug 2010 "Illegal logging and severe environmental damage" 1.4m
SAFRAN SA
SAFRAN
Safran is a French conglomerate involved in defense, aerospace propulsion and equipment, and security. It is the result of a merger between the propulsion and aerospace equipment group SNECMA and the defense conglomerate SAGEM. Its headquarters are located in Paris.The name Safran, literally...

11 Oct 2005 Production of nuclear missiles for the French Navy. N/A
Serco Group Plc
Serco Group
Serco Group plc is a government services company based in Hook, North Hampshire in the United Kingdom. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.-History:...

15 Nov 2007 Maintenance of British nuclear weapons through the Atomic Weapons Establishment
Atomic Weapons Establishment
The Atomic Weapons Establishment is responsible for the design, manufacture and support of warheads for the United Kingdom's nuclear deterrent. AWE plc is responsible for the day-to-day operations of AWE...

.
N/A
Souza Cruz SA
Souza Cruz S/A
Souza Cruz is a Brazilian tobacco company, subsidiary of British American Tobacco. The company was founded in 1903 by the Portuguese immigrant Albino Souza Cruz....

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 7.4m
Singapore Technologies Engineering 22 Mar 2002 Production of anti-personnel landmines. N/A
Swedish Match AB
Swedish Match
Swedish Match is a Swedish company based in Stockholm that makes snus, tobacco, cigars , Red Man Chewing Tobacco, dipping tobacco, matches and lighters. It was founded as Svenska Tändsticksaktiebolaget by Ivar Kreuger in 1917 in Jönköping...

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 75m
Textron Inc
Textron
Textron is a conglomerate that includes Bell Helicopter, E-Z-GO, Cessna Aircraft Company, and Greenlee, among others. It was founded by Royal Little in 1923 as the Special Yarns Company, and is headquartered at the Textron Tower in Providence, Rhode Island, United States.With total revenues of...

30 Jan 2009 Production of components for cluster munitions. 36m
United Technologies Corp.
United Technologies Corporation
United Technologies Corporation is an American multinational conglomerate headquartered in the United Technologies Building in Hartford, Connecticut...

11 Oct 2005 Production of engines for ICBMs in the U.S. Air Force. N/A
Universal Corp VA
Universal Corporation
Universal Corporation is one of the world's leading tobacco merchants. Incorporated in 1918, Universal has headquarters in Richmond, Virginia, in the United States.-Current operations:...

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 3m
Vector Group Ltd.
Vector Group
Vector Group Ltd. is a Miami, Florida-based, publicly traded holding company founded by its Chairman, Bennett S. LeBow. Howard Lorber serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of Vector Group Ltd.. The company is headquartered in the Miami Tower in Downtown Miami.The company's holdings...

19 Jan 2010 Production of tobacco. 2.1m
Vedanta Resources Plc
Vedanta Resources
Vedanta Resources plc is a global mining and metals company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the largest mining and non-ferrous metals company in India and also has mining operations in Australia and Zambia. Its main products are copper, zinc, aluminium, lead and iron ore...

28 Aug 2007 Environmental and human rights abuses. 12m
Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...

28 Mar 2006 Breach of human rights and labour rights. 372m


The Fund does not announce exclusions until it has completed sales of its positions, so as not to affect the share price at the time of the transaction.

Reinstated companies

Three previously excluded companies have later been reinstated to the fund, because the companies were no longer involved in the activities that led to their exclusion.
Company HQ Date of exclusion Reason Divestment (USD) Date of reinstatement
DRD Gold Limited 29 Jan 2007 Serious environmental damage. 0.6m 3 Sep 2009
Kerr-McGee Corporation
Kerr-McGee
The Kerr-McGee Corporation, founded in 1929, was an energy company involved in the exploration and production of oil and gas. On June 23, 2006, Houston-based Anadarko Petroleum Corporation agreed to acquire Kerr-McGee in an all-cash transaction totaling $16.5 billion plus the assumption of $2.6...

29 Apr 2005 Petroleum surveying in occupied Western Sahara
Western Sahara
Western Sahara is a disputed territory in North Africa, bordered by Morocco to the north, Algeria to the northeast, Mauritania to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Its surface area amounts to . It is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, mainly...

 
54m 30 Jun 2006
Thales SA
Thales Group
The Thales Group is a French electronics company delivering information systems and services for the aerospace, defense, transportation and security markets...

30 Jun 2005 Production of components for cluster munitions. N/A 3 Sep 2009

Companies "under observation"

One company, Siemens AG
Siemens AG
Siemens AG is a German multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Munich, Germany. It is the largest Europe-based electronics and electrical engineering company....

, has been placed "under observation"; meaning that while it qualifies for exclusion, the Ministry of Finance has opted to keep it under scrutiny in order to help put pressure on the company to improve. It has been proposed that one more company, Goldcorp
Goldcorp
Goldcorp Inc. is a gold producer headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Goldcorp has 16 operations and development projects in 6 countries across the Americas....

, should be placed under similar observation.
Company HQ Date of warning Reason Shares
Siemens AG
Siemens AG
Siemens AG is a German multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Munich, Germany. It is the largest Europe-based electronics and electrical engineering company....

Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...

, Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...

 and Erlangen
Erlangen
Erlangen is a Middle Franconian city in Bavaria, Germany. It is located at the confluence of the river Regnitz and its large tributary, the Untere Schwabach.Erlangen has more than 100,000 inhabitants....

, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

13 Mar 2009 "Gross and systematic corruption" 900m USD

Currency portfolio

In October 2010 the fund spent 600 million kroner ($136.4 million as of October 2010) daily buying foreign currencies. That figure would be increased to 800 million kroner daily in November. This practice was suspended in January 2011, and on January 31 it was announced that this would also be the case in February.

The Government Pension Fund - Norway

The Government Pension Fund - Norway (Norwegian: Statens pensjonsfond Norge, SPN) was established by the National Insurance Act (Folketrygdloven) in 1967 under the name National Insurance Scheme Fund (Norwegian: Folketrygdfondet). The name was changed at the same time as the former Petroleum Fund on 1 January 2006. This fund continues to be managed by a separate board and separate government entity still named Folketrygdfondet. The Government Pension Fund - Norway had a value of NOK 106.9 billion at the end of 2006. Unlike the Global division, it is instructed to invest in domestic companies on the stock market, dominantly on Oslo Stock Exchange
Oslo Stock Exchange
The Oslo Stock Exchange serves as the main market for trading in the shares of Norwegian companies. It opens at 9:00am and closes 5:30pm local time...

. Due to this, the Government Pension Fund - Norway is a key stock owner in many large Norwegian companies.

See also

  • The budgetary rule
    The budgetary rule
    The budgetary rule is a rule concerning the usage of capital gains from The Government Pension Fund - Global of Norway. The rule was introduced in 2001 by the First cabinet Stoltenberg to ensure that the sovereign wealth fund, with a vast majority of its dealings related to activities in the...

     – concerning the usage of capital gains from The Government Pension Fund - Global
  • Pensions in Norway
    Pensions in Norway
    Pensions in Norway fall into three major divisions; State Pensions, Occupational Pensions and Individual or personal Pensions.- State pensions :...

  • Economy of Norway
    Economy of Norway
    The economy of Norway is a developed mixed economy with heavy state-ownership in strategic areas of the economy. Although sensitive to global business cycles, the economy of Norway has shown robust growth since the start of the industrial era...

  • Sovereign wealth fund
    Sovereign wealth fund
    A sovereign wealth fund is a state-owned investment fund composed of financial assets such as stocks, bonds, property, precious metals or other financial instruments. Sovereign wealth funds invest globally. Some of them have grabbed attention making bad investments in several Wall Street financial...

  • Energy Resources of Norway
  • Ethical investing

External links

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