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Norway’s Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG), often called the Oil Fund, invests under a mandate set by the Ministry of Finance and is managed operationally by Norges Bank. Its 70/30 equity-and-bond benchmark is a measuring stick, not a requirement that the actual portfolio always hold those exact proportions. The fund seeks long-term returns through broad market exposure, security selection and investments outside listed markets, while its reported results depend on the period and measurement basis.
Who owns and manages the fund?
The fund belongs to the Norwegian people, represented by the Government and the Storting, Norway’s parliament. The Ministry of Finance sets the overall investment strategy and formal management mandate. Norges Bank carries out the operational management, and its investment-management division, Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), manages the portfolio and reports its results.
The mandate’s objective is the highest possible long-term return after costs, subject to acceptable risk. Responsible management is part of that mandate, within the financial objective. The mandate also sets eligible markets, asset classes and risk limits. The GPFG is a sovereign wealth fund—not an account that individuals can invest in or withdraw from.
What does the 70/30 benchmark mean?
The strategic benchmark consists of 70% equities and 30% fixed income. The weights have been in place since 1 May 2019. NBIM uses indices from FTSE Russell for the equity portion and Bloomberg indices for the bond portion. The benchmark provides the reference portfolio against which results are measured; it is not a promise that actual holdings will match those percentages at every date. See NBIM’s benchmark index explanation.
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At 31 December 2025, the actual portfolio was reported as 71.3% equities, 26.5% fixed income, 1.7% unlisted real estate and 0.4% unlisted renewable energy infrastructure. These are year-end holdings, not the benchmark allocation. The unlisted investments are outside the benchmark’s 70/30 equity-and-bond mix. NBIM finances them by selling equities and fixed income from the benchmark portfolio, and compares their returns with the benchmark securities sold to fund them.
How does NBIM invest?
NBIM describes three complementary strategies. They operate on different horizons and may not all add to relative returns in a given period.
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Market exposure
This strategy provides broad, cost-effective exposure to equities and bonds represented in the benchmark. It is the foundation of the portfolio’s market-wide investment exposure.
Security selection
NBIM analyses and selects companies and securities, allowing positions to differ from benchmark weights. It uses both internal and external managers. The goal is to improve results relative to the benchmark, but selection can underperform as well as outperform.
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Fund allocation
This strategy seeks to improve the fund’s return and risk characteristics over time, including through unlisted real estate and renewable energy infrastructure. Because these investments are funded by selling benchmark assets, their performance is assessed in relation to the assets they replace.
In its 2025 annual report, NBIM said market exposure contributed positively to relative return that year, while security selection and fund allocation contributed negatively. It also reported that the total return over the previous three years had been below the benchmark because of fund allocation’s negative contribution. These are retrospective attributions, not forecasts.
What returns did the fund earn?
The figures below are reported by NBIM. Unless specified otherwise, returns are measured in the fund’s currency basket: a weighted mix of currencies in the equity and bond benchmark. That investment-return measure is distinct from the fund’s value expressed in Norwegian kroner.
| Measure | NBIM figure | Period and basis |
|---|---|---|
| Total return | 15.1% | Calendar year 2025; 0.28 percentage point below the benchmark |
| Equity return | 19.3% | Calendar year 2025 |
| Fixed-income return | 5.4% | Calendar year 2025 |
| Unlisted real estate return | 4.4% | Calendar year 2025 |
| Unlisted renewable energy infrastructure return | 18.1% | Calendar year 2025 |
| Average annual return | 6.6% | 1998–2025 |
| Annual net real return | 4.3% | 1998–2025; after inflation and management costs |
| Average annual equity-management excess return | 0.44 percentage point | Since 1999 through 2025; compared with the adjusted equity benchmark |
| Average annual fixed-income-management excess return | 0.25 percentage point | Since 1998 through 2025; compared with the adjusted bond benchmark |
The 15.1% total return is the fund’s absolute return for 2025; being 0.28 percentage point below the benchmark is a separate, relative measure. NBIM’s returns page rounds that relative figure to −0.3 percentage point. For the current longer-term series, NBIM reports a 6.86% annualised return from 1 January 1998 through 30 June 2026. That figure uses a later end date than the 6.6% average annual return through 2025, so the two should not be treated as measurements over the same period. See the dated fund returns series.
Why can the fund’s value in kroner change differently from its return?
Investment return, cash flows and currency conversion affect the fund’s reported value through different channels. NBIM reported a 2,362 billion kroner accounting return in 2025, while the fund’s value increased by 1,526 billion kroner during the year. Inflows added capital, while appreciation of the krone against several major currencies reduced the value of overseas holdings when expressed in kroner. The difference does not mean the investment-return figure and the change in fund value measure the same thing.
A stronger or weaker krone can therefore change the kroner value without being the same as the return measured in the fund’s currency basket. When comparing figures, check whether they describe investment performance, benchmark-relative performance, or the fund’s krone-denominated value.
What drove the 2025 result?
NBIM CEO Nicolai Tangen said in the 29 January 2026 release, “The fund delivered very strong results in 2025. Stocks in technology, financials and basic materials stood out, making a significant contribution to the overall return”. This describes the reported contribution in that year; it does not establish which sectors will lead in future periods.
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