Saudi Wealth Fund’s Returns Boosted by Global Markets Rally

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund said returns rose last year driven by local investments and gains on its international portfolio.

The Public Investment Fund’s annualized returns since 2017 rose to 8.7%، compared with 8% a year earlier، according to an annual report published Monday. Performance was boosted by last year’s rally in global markets، with the S&P 500 Index returning 24% in 2023.

Assets under management at the fund grew to $760 billion at the end of last year، helped by the kingdom’s move to transfer a 4% stake — worth over $70 billion — in Saudi Aramco to one of the PIF’s subsidiaries in 2023.

International assets

International assets made up a fifth of total holdings، or 586 billion riyals at the end of 2023. That was up by more than 14% from a year earlier، which the PIF said was “well ahead” of target — though those holdings accounted for 23% of total assets a year earlier. The portion of the fund’s externally-managed assets fell to 15% from 17%.

The fund، chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman، is a key vehicle for his efforts to reshape the Saudi economy and wean it off a reliance on oil sales.

Earlier this year، the kingdom transfered another 8% stake in Aramco to the PIF، helping it get closer to a target of managing more than $1 trillion of assets by 2025.

The fund swung to a profit last year، according to accounts published in July. It made $25 billion from investment activities، compared to a loss of $11 billion a year earlier.