Norway fund dumps oil

NORWAY’S £760bn sovereign wealth fund is considering dumping shares in oil and gas companies.

Its central bank, which manages the fund, has told ministers the move would make them less vulnerable to crude oil price changes.

About £28bn is invested in oil and gas firms but no decision can be made about divestment without the finance ministry’s backing. The news hit the shares of Shell and BP, which the fund has stakes in. BP fell 0.8pc and Shell 2.7pc.

norway is itself one of Europe’s biggest oil and gas suppliers and its fund invests cash from the proceeds. But Quilter Cheviot analyst Liz Dhillon said the move would have limited impact on producers.