SINGAPOREAN state-owned investor Temasek Holdings spent billions of US dollars in the second quarter buying shares in US technology giants, just before the sector dropped in July.
Temasek increased the value of its holdings in 11 big tech firms by US$3.3 billion in the three months ended Jun 30, according to an analysis of its two most recent 13F filings. The vast bulk of the increase – some US$3.2 billion – went into six of those firms: Microsoft, Apple, Nvidia, Alphabet, Meta Platforms and Amazon.com.
By the end of July, however, most of those companies saw their stocks slide amid concern about the extent of artificial intelligence related gains and fears of a recession. Alphabet and Amazon’s share prices have fallen by about 12 per cent since the end of June, while Microsoft’s are down around 7 per cent over that period.
Many of the tech shares held by Temasek have started to recover this week and it’s unclear how it invested since Jun 30. The firm may have made gains depending on its purchase price, sold right before the fall or even snapped up more as they declined in an effort to buy the dip. With a net portfolio value of S$389 billion as at Mar 31, the purchases would have represented around 1 per cent of its total holdings.
The multi-billion US dollar buying spree underscores Temasek’s commitment to ramping up investments in the US, which it said last month would be the largest destination for its capital with plans to invest US$30 billion over the next five years. BLOOMBERG
