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Norway Looks to Spread Wealth to US


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Norway Looks to Spread Wealth to US

Business

Category: Financial / Investment

The Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global—the world’s largest sovereign-wealth fund—has been in talks about deals with potential real-estate partners in New York, Washington and Boston in recent months. On Friday, the Norwegian government gave the fund’s manager, Norges Bank Investment Management, the green light to start spending.

Karsten Kallevig, the fund’s real-estate chief investment officer, said in an interview last week that NBIM could pull the trigger on its first U.S. deal as early as the first quarter of 2013, likely with a focus on either high-end retail or office space.

The wealth fund, which gets revenue tied to Norway’s oil and gas industry, arrives in the U.S. property market at a time when values in New York and other major cities are considered high, and a flood of other foreign investors, including Chinese buyers, are looking for deals.

Market participants, however, say Norway’s appetite for high-priced properties and its long-term horizon for returns could help it find success in the world’s biggest property market.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

Published: March 28, 2024