NORWAY – The Government Pension Fund - Global assigned capital to five new mandates in the first quarter – one fixed income and four equities.

The former Petroleum Fund awarded a specialist US fixed income brief to Delaware Investment Advisors while Jupiter Asset Management and Tradewinds NWQ Global Investors gained sector equity mandates. Intrinsic Value Investors and Dalton Capital (Guernsey) were awarded regional equity mandates.

The news came in Norges Bank Investment Management’s first-quarter management report. NBIM, which runs the fund, did not disclose the size of the mandates.

The Government Pension Fund - Global made a 2.2% return on investments in the first quarter, beating the benchmark by 0.20 percentage points. The fund rose in the period by NOK85bn to NOK1,484bn (€189.7bn). According to NBIM’s website, the fund had grown to NOK1,458bn as at the end of April.

“The increase in market value is the result of a positive return of NOK31.6bn measure in international currency, and transfers of new capital of NOK82.4bn, while a stronger krone in relation to the investment currencies reduced the value of the fund by NOK29.1bn,” the 46-page report stated.

The pension fund’s equities portfolio returned 7.17% while fixed income returned –1.13%.

Norges also disclosed that two new mandates were assigned to managers in the first quarter for its NOK212.7bn foreign exchange investment portfolio. Barclays Global Investors was awarded a specialist US brief while Putnam Advisory Co. got emerging markets.

NOK7.5bn was switched from this portfolio’s fixed income assets into equities in the first quarter.

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