South Korea's national pension fund launched its first overseas office in Manhattan, New York, on Thursday as part of its efforts to diversify its investment portfolio.

   The National Pension Service (NPS), the world's fourth-largest pension fund manager, held a ceremony at New York Palace Hotel the same day to celebrate the opening of its New York representative office, a move designed to beef up investments in overseas assets and strengthen its strategic alliances with international institutions.

   As of the end of 2010, 12.6 percent of the pension fund's assets, or 40.6 trillion won (US$ 37.6 billion), were invested overseas.

   The NPS aims to raise the ratio of its overseas assets to 20 percent of its total assets by 2015, with the new office expected to become the stepping stone for the pension fund's future overseas investments.

   "The NPS plans to establish overseas offices in London, Hong Kong and other financial hubs next year," NPS Chairman Jun Kwang-woo said at the ceremony.

   The NPS is South Korea's biggest investor, which operated an estimated 340 trillion won (US$310 billion) worth of assets under its management as of the end of April.

Source: Yonhap News (June 24, 2011)