At the end of June, Norway’s sovereign wealth fund had a record 27.3 billion kroner invested in Portugal, underlining its importance for the country’s stock and bond markets.

This represents the highest level of investment since Norway began investing in Portugal, according to the fund’s latest disclosures.

The fund is one of the largest institutional investors in Portugal’s stock market, and also holds government and corporate debt, ECO News reports.

Expanding portfolio

The portfolio rose 32 percent in the first half, increasing by 6.6 billion kroner. Of the total, 16.3 billion kroner, representing about 60 percent, was invested in debt securities, while more than 11 billion kroner, representing 40 percent, was invested in shares listed on Portugal’s main stock index (PSI).

During the first six months of the year, Norges Bank increased its stakes in EDP and Jerónimo Martins. Its holding in EDP rose from 1.81 percent at the end of last year to 2.13 percent, valued at more than 400 million euros, making it the fund’s largest single equity investment in Portugal, ECO News reports. In Jerónimo Martins, the owner of the supermarket chain Pingo Doce, the stake increased from 0.29 percent to 1 percent.

Portuguese Treasury bonds

The fund also expanded its exposure to Portuguese sovereign debt. At the end of June, it held 880 million euros in Portuguese Treasury bonds, up 320 million euros from the end of last year, plus 15 million euros in debt from the Azores autonomous region.

Another 550 million euros was invested in debt issued by Portuguese banks and companies, including Novobanco, Santander Totta, EDP Servicios Financieros, BPI, EDP and EDP Finance.