The National Pension Service, the largest pension fund in South Korea, announced on Thursday that it had achieved a 5.82% return in the first quarter of 2024. Total assets of the fund grew to 1,101 trillion won ($797 billion), an increase of 61 trillion won from the prior quarter.
The fund noted that it had strong returns from global equities in the first quarter, specifically U.S. technology stocks. International equities returned 13.45% to the fund, while domestic stocks returned 5.53%. Foreign and domestic bonds returned 4.48% and -0.01%, respectively. Alternatives returned 4.11% last quarter.
The pension announced in a portfolio overview that it intends to deliver stable returns and manage risk by reducing its allocation to domestic fixed income and increasing its investments to alternatives and overseas assets as part of a portfolio diversification strategy.
“Continuing from last year, we have achieved good results this year as well. As a long-term investor who manages people’s precious retirement funds, we will do our best to generate stable profits even in a highly volatile market environment,” said Kim-Tae Hyun, chairman of the NPS, in a translated press release.
As of the end of the first quarter, NPS’s portfolio had a 15.8% allocation to alternatives, a 47.5% allocation to equities, and a 36.7% allocation to fixed income.
Out of the fund’s equities and fixed income holdings, domestic Korean equities comprise of 14.2% of the total NPS portfolio, global equities make up another 33.3%. The fund allocates 29.2% of its portfolio to domestic fixed income, and another 7.2% to global fixed income. Short-term assets make up 0.3% of the portfolio and other assets 0.1%.
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Tags: Alternatives, Kim Tae-hyun, Korea, National Pension Service, Pensions