Australia's Future Fund, Melbourne, gained 1.1% in the quarter ended Sept. 30, lifting the value of its investment portfolio to A$162.9 billion ($115.8 billion).
However, the portfolio was down 1.8% from a year earlier as the impact of this year's coronavirus pandemic continued to work its way through the economy, according to a portfolio update posted on the sovereign wealth fund's website on Wednesday.
The update struck a cautious tone regarding the global economy's ability to sustain the recovery of the past six months. "Whether this can be maintained depends on the health outlook, the level of government lockdowns, and the support of expansionary fiscal and monetary policy," it said.
In the meantime, "we have been focused on increasing portfolio flexibility, ensuring the Future Fund is well positioned to take advantage of opportunities that arise in the current market."
The fund reported a 19.1% weighting in cash, up from 17% at the close of the prior quarter.
Elsewhere, the latest asset allocation figures showed assets shifting to hedge funds from listed equities.
The fund's allocation to hedge funds as of Sept. 30 stood at 15.1%, up from 12.9% as the close of the prior quarter. Listed equities dropped to 31.7% of the portfolio from 34% as of June 30. Developed market equities saw the largest change, at 16.8% of the portfolio from 19.1%.
Allocations to illiquid asset segments edged lower in line with the fund's recent focus on boosting flexibility. The fund's weighting to private equity fell to 14.1% from 15.2%, while real estate slipped to 5.6% from 5.8% and infrastructure and timberland dropped to 6.9% from 7.1%.
Debt securities ended the latest quarter with a 7.5% weighting, down from 8% as of June 30.
