Japan's Government Pension Fund, the world's largest pension fund, saw record gains of 18.98 trillion yen ($133 billion) in the second quarter of this year, boosted by strong performance in Japan's stock and global bond markets.
The fund's assets increased 9.5% during the April to June period to 219.17 trillion yen.
Japanese stocks were the top performers among the fund's investments, gaining 14.4% in the quarter, helped by a booming Japanese market supported by inflation stability indicators.
The value of the fund's foreign stocks rose 15.4% while foreign bonds increased 8.1% and Japanese bonds gained 0.4% during the second quarter.
However, with about half of its total assets invested in domestic and international bonds, the fund's performance remains exposed to increases in bond yields and fluctuations in the yen's exchange rate, amid the Bank of Japan's slow move away from its ultra-loose monetary policy.
The record gains came mainly from Japanese and foreign equities, while bond holdings showed more modest increases. Still, sovereign bonds remain an important part of the pension fund's diversified portfolio.
