Norway Idea to Exit Oil Stocks Is ‘Shot Heard Around the World’
> The Nordic nation’s $1 trillion sovereign wealth fund said Thursday that it’s considering unloading its shares of Exxon Mobil Corp., Royal Dutch Shell Plc and other oil giants to diversify its holdings and guard against drops in crude prices.<p>That doesn't sound like activist divestment.  And in fact, environmental activism isn't why Norway is considering this action:<p>> Norwegian officials say the plan isn’t based on any particular view about future oil prices<p>> ...<p>> the move has more to do with hedging risk than saving the planet. Norway derives about 20 percent of its economic output from oil and gas. Finance officials have long debated whether reinvesting those profits back into petroleum producers leaves Norwegians overly exposed to the volatility of oil prices.<p>So the headline and intro are fairly misleading, IMO.