SINGAPORE - Temasek Holdings grew its net portfolio value by S$43 billion to a fresh record of S$266 billion for the year ended March 31, the Singapore investment company announced on Tuesday during its annual performance review.
One-year total shareholder return (TSR) was 19.2 per cent. One of the key measures of Temasek's performance, TSR for 10 years and 20 years were 9 per cent and 7 per cent respectively. Since its inception in 1974, Temasek's return to its shareholder - the Ministry of Finance - has been 16 per cent.
The stellar performance came as Temasek saw its most active 12 months since the global financial crisis, during which it made S$30 billion of new investments and a record S$19 billion in divestments.
The investment company continued to adopt an Asia-focused portfolio strategy, with its exposure to the region staying at 70 per cent compared to 2014's 72 per cent. Singapore remained the most significant country on its portfolio, with a 28 per cent exposure.
"Within Asia, we have been steadily increasing our exposure to China, which is at 27 per cent of portfolio... We have broadened our exposure to include sectors like insurance, consumer, and technology, which are likely to benefit from the transformation of China," Temasek added.
Alongside its widely reported S$5.7 billion investment in consumer giant A.S. Watson last year, other regional investments included generics firm Intas and hospital operator Global Health in India, as well as transportation network company Didi Kuaidi in China and Southeast Asia-based e-commerce platform Lazada.
In the developed economies, Temasek grew its combined exposure to North America and Europe from 14 per cent to 17 per cent, focusing on the life sciences segment with an US$800 million additional stake in Gilead Sciences in the United States.
Temasek also snapped up MidCity Place and 22 Bishopgate in the United Kingdom.
Temasek has pared down its stake in China Construction Bank, benefitting from the bull market and also sold around 10 per cent of its Alibaba stake after the internet firm's successful listing. Other divestments included Mosaic, Cloudary, Kunlun Energy and Medreich.
"On balance, our activities reflect our constructive view of the global economy in the longer term, as well as our flexibility to capitalise on shorter term liquidity-driven rallies in some markets, as we had seen in the second half last year," Temasek president Lee Theng Kiat said.
Going forward, Temasek will continue to explore disruptive sciences in areas such as energy and biotech.
At home, Temasek will step up its efforts to support the growth of local business and institutions through its Enterprise Development Group, which spearheaded the combination of CitySpring Infrastructure Trust and Keppel Infrastructure Trust while working with the government on a long-term project to rejuvenate the Mandai area.
