KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 (Xinhua) -- The Employees Provident Fund (EPF), Malaysia's state pension fund, said on Tuesday it recorded a total investment income of 27.73 billion ringgit (about 6.97 billion U.S. dollars) for the first quarter ended March 31, 2026, marking a 51 percent increase from 18.31 billion ringgit in the same period a year earlier.

The strong performance in the first quarter was driven by a portfolio strategy implemented at the beginning of the year to realize gains ahead of anticipated market volatility, its chief executive officer Ahmad Zulqarnain Onn said in a statement.

Looking ahead, he cautioned that the environment remains challenging amid elevated geopolitical risks, rising oil prices, and renewed inflationary pressures, all of which pose headwinds to global markets.

According to the statement, EPF's total investment assets stood at 1.44 trillion ringgit, with 36 percent invested globally. International investments generated 15.36 billion ringgit, accounting for 55 percent of total investment income in the quarter.