Sunday 27 September 2009

Singapore’s GIC likely to report shift into property and resources


Singapore’s US$200 billion-plus sovereign wealth fund GIC is likely to reveal next week it is moving more money into property, resources and Asian assets after recently cutting its exposure to large Western banks.

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Singapore’s GIC likely to report shift into property and resources

Reuters in Singapore
26 September 2009

Singapore’s US$200 billion-plus sovereign wealth fund GIC is likely to reveal next week it is moving more money into property, resources and Asian assets after recently cutting its exposure to large Western banks.

The Government of Singapore Investment Corp is due to release its annual report for the year to March, only the second year the fund will make the report public.

GIC is the world’s fourth-largest sovereign fund after those of Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia and Norway, according to Deutsche Bank. It is a key investor in Swiss financial giant UBS and Citigroup, even after halving its stake in the US bank this week to less than 5 per cent.

While GIC does not reveal the size of its assets or list its biggest investments, unlike sister fund Temasek Holdings, how GIC allocates its funds by geography and asset class will provide clues about its strategy, investment outlook and risk appetite.

It will also outline the proportion of cash in its portfolio, which it can use for new investments.

About 44 per cent of GIC’s portfolio was in stocks and a further 26 per cent in fixed income at the end of March last year.

Analysts said GIC might put more money into physical property, which accounted for 10 per cent of assets last year, and might have raised its investment in natural resources, which was then just 2 per cent of assets.

“GIC’s real estate side will perhaps become busier these days, given the huge collapse in global property, which will give GIC a chance to spot opportunities, especially in the US,” said Song Seng Wun, an economist at CIMB.

GIC still owns notes in UBS that can be exchanged for more than 6 per cent of the Swiss bank’s shares but sold half its stake in Citigroup this month, realising a profit of US$1.6 billion.

It is likely sitting on a substantial loss on its 11 billion Swiss franc (HK$83.34 billion) investment in UBS.

GIC has been increasing its investments in Asia in the past decade, although the United States was its main investment destination, accounting for 34 per cent of assets in March last year.

The fund will also state its average return over the past 20 years, which most likely dipped from the 7.8 per cent it reported last year.