LONDON, Jan 1 Reuters Saudi Arabia39;s Public Investment Fund accounted for about a quarter of the almost 124 billion spent by sovereign wealth funds worldwide last year, a report published on Jan. 1 showed.

PIF39;s whopping 31.5 billion spend in 2023 compared with 123.8 billion for all sovereign wealth funds, based on a preliminary annual report from industry specialist Global SWF, which tracks the world39;s sovereign investment funds.

The strong rally last year in global stocks helped to swell the assets managed by the sovereign wealth funds worldwide to a record 11.2 trillion.

Total sovereigncontrolled spending on the energy transition everything from green hydrogen to lithium mining also hit a record 25.9 billion in 2023, the report said.

Despite this, total spending by the sovereign wealth funds last year was 21 below 2022.

This may signal an overly cautious approach, as there is no shortage of capital to put to work among these institutions, Global SWF managing director Diego López said in the report.

Singapore39;s GIC, which led spending by wealth funds for the past six years, invested 48 less in 2023, despite a 144 billion inflow from the country39;s central bank.

Gulf funds were able to increase their dealmaking dominance, largely at the expense of Canadian and Singaporean funds, the Global SWF report showed. Gulf funds now account for nearly 40 of the investment value deployed by sovereign wealth funds.

Data provided by groups such as Global SWF is…