Swedish portfolio holdings 2002

Contact: Johanna Nahkuri Högfeldt, tel. +46 8 787 02 41

Foreign shares and debt instruments

The Riksbank today presents the results of its annual survey of Swedish portfolio holdings of foreign shares and debt securities. The survey shows that Swedish investors at the end of 2002 owned foreign portfolio assets corresponding to a market value of SEK 1 289 billion, which was approximately SEK 250 billion less than at the end of 2001. Of these assets, around 60 per cent was invested in for-eign shares and mutual funds and the remainder in foreign debt securities. The data in the survey form part of a global survey led by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The substantial decrease in the value of portfolio assets was largely due to declin-ing equity prices around the world. A stronger krona exchange rate in 2002 also contributed to the fall in value.

The survey also includes a breakdown of investments according to country and Swedish holder sector.

The United States was again the single biggest recipient country for Swedish portfolio investments. Almost one-third of the total invested capital was invested in the US market.

The survey also shows that the largest holder category for foreign portfolio assets was the sector 'Other financial institutions', mainly insurance companies and mu-tual funds. The sector accounted for just under two-thirds of the total invest-ments abroad. This was followed by the social insurance sector, which owned just over one-fifth.

The full report can be downloaded from the Riksbank's website http://www.riksbank.se/ under Statistics/Balance of Payments/Surveys.