GIC held over 9 pct of Citigroup prior to stake sale * Now has below 5 pct; will stay on as “portfolio investor” * GIC says realised $1.6 bln profit from sale * Citigroup shares up in premarket trade By Kevin Lim and Saeed Azhar SINGAPORE, Sept 22 - Singapore wealth fund GIC has halved its stake in Citigroup <C.N>, cashing in on a market rally for a profit of $1.6 billion, but signalling investor concerns over the outlook for global banks. The sale follows other divestments by sovereign funds from Western banks they helped rescue at the start of the financial crisis to use the money closer to home in emerging markets and in other growth sectors such as resources. In June, Abu Dhabi exited Barclays Plc <BARC.L> with a gain of about 1.5 billion pounds , though Temasek [TEM.UL], another Singapore wealth fund, lost an estimated $4 billion from an early exit from Bank of ...

Singapore’s GIC sees more distress in markets

Tue Mar 10, 2009 2:35am EDT

By Kevin Lim and Saeed Azhar

SINGAPORE, March 10 (Reuters) - An official from the Government of Singapore Investment Corp (GIC) said he expects more weakness in financial markets in the next 12-18 months, and recommended investors hold gold and other safe assets such as government bonds.

GIC, one of the world’s largest sovereign funds with an estimated $200 billion-plus in assets, has invested aggressively in troubled global lenders, picking up multi-billion dollar stakes in Citigroup (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and UBS (UBSN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) in late 2007 and early 2008.

There is “systemic capital inadequacy globally”, and the world will probably see “three years of a very vicious downcycle,” GIC’s director of economics and strategy, Yeoh Lam Keong, told the Investment Management Association of Singapore conference

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