The world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, Norway, will close its office in Shanghai, a decision that will not affect its investments in China, Norwegian Bank announced on Thursday.

The fund, which today has assets of more than 15.2 trillion crowns ($1.42 trillion) globally, held stakes in about 850 Chinese companies worth a total of $42 billion at the end of 2022.

“Over the years, our Singapore office has expanded to handle all operational functions, including China,” the Norwegian central bank said in a statement.

“This decision is based on operational considerations and does not affect the fund’s investment strategy for our investments in China,” she emphasized.

The closure of the office, which had eight employees, comes as China, the world’s second-largest economy, struggles to restore growth rates as robust as before the Covid pandemic.

China’s growth, burdened mainly by the drop in exports, reached only 0.8% between the first and second quarter.

Fueled by the state’s oil and gas revenues and invested in stocks, bonds, real estate and, to a lesser extent, unlisted renewable energy projects, Norway’s sovereign wealth fund will now have just four offices around the world: Oslo, London, New York and Singapore .