SWF Radar ChineseNSSF

The Oxford International Review’s SWF blog has published an interview with Yu-Wei Hu, consultant on Chinese pensions at the OECD.

Among other things, he says that, “[The m]ain topics in which the OECD is interested and has worked on include a) SWFs and recipient country investment policy; b) SWFs and public pension reserve funds; c) SWFs and state-owned enterprises.”

MarketWatch writes that, “China’s national pension fund [the National Social Security Fund (NSSF)] will likely pay CNY20 billion ($2.9 billion) to CNY30 billion to buy an unspecified stake in China Development Bank, China Business News reported Wednesday, citing unnamed sources.”

Money Management reports that, “Allianz Global Investors has released a report showing the four largest Asian pension reserve funds in China, Australia, Japan and South Korea [respectively, the NSSF, Future Fund, Government Pension Investment Fund and National Pension Fund] are changing their governance and investment policies in an effort to maximise their returns, increasing their influence on the financial market.”

The report can be downloaded here (PDF).

China Knowledge writes that, “China’s National Social Security Fund (NSSF) has invested RMB 15 billion (HK$17.06 billion), equivalent 3% of its RMB 500 billion in shares of listed overseas companies and will raise the holdings to boost returns, said Zhan Yuyin, the director-general of global investment at NSSF, sources reported.”

Thomson Reuters reports that, “China’s national pension fund [the National Social Security Fund (NSSF)] intends to become a strategic shareholder in China Development Bank [CDB], the state-owned infrastructure lender, and to invest in energy projects, its chairman [Dai Xianglong] said on Sunday.”

The Economic Observer Online reports that, ” Around eight global asset management firms have been picked by China’s pension fund – National Council for Social Security Fund (NSSF) – as potential managers to look after its overseas investment portfolios. A source close to the NSSF told the EO that the list of companies was finalized after a meeting in Shenzhen in late August, and they were engaged in detailed negotiations currently.”

MarketWatch reports that, “China’s state-run pension fund [the National Social Security Fund (NSSF)] has no exposure to stocks or corporate bonds issued by U.S. mortgage giants Fannie Mae, the National Council for Social Security Fund [NCSSF], which oversees the pension fund, said Tuesday.”

The Economic Observer Online presents various opinions from around the world on the IMF-IWG GAPP guidelines for SWFs.

It is worth noting the mention that is made of the other Chinese sovereign investors in the context of a discussion of the IMF-IWG:

Though CIC had attracted most of the global scrutiny, Chinese government investments were made through various entities like the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), the China Development Bank, and the National Social Security Fund, just to name a few.

Zhang [Ming of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a major Chinese government think tank,] said there were some rivalries between these entities, and the government should coordinate their overseas investment behavior and map out a holistic strategy to ensure they “cooperate while competing”.

Thomson Reuters writes in a digest of Chinese press stories that, “The Securities Times reports that] [r]epresentatives from the National Social Security Fund have been meeting domestic fund managers in recent weeks as China’s state pension fund plans to select managers to invest in domestic mutual funds while broadening its portfolio.”

AFP reports that, “China’s national pension fund [the National Social Security Fund] is in talks with CITIC Capital Holdings to set up a private equity fund worth up to five billion yuan (730 million dollars), state media reported Wednesday.”