UPDATE: Singapore's GIC Buys 5.0% Stake In Bunge; Market Value At Close To $500 Million

Government of Singapore Investment Corp., GIC, has acquired a 5.0% stake in U.S. commodity trading company Bunge Ltd. (BG), with a market value at close to US$500 million as the fund looks to build up its exposure to the resources sector.

In a filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, dated Feb. 13 and posted on the company's website Thursday, Bunge said that Singapore's sovereign wealth fund acquired 7.305 million shares in the company. However, it didn't state the price at which the shares were acquired.

Bunge shares closed in New York Thursday at US$67.83, valuing GIC's stake at US$495.5 million.

A spokeswoman for GIC confirmed the stake purchase but didn't provide further financial details or the reason for buying the stake.

GIC, which had 3% exposure to natural resources as of March 31, 2011, has been looking to expand its portfolio in the sector, much like other sovereign wealth funds such as China Investment Corp. (CIC.YY), Abu Dhabi's Aabar Investments and Singapore's state-run investment company Temasek Holdings Pte. Ltd.

In the middle of last year, GIC agreed to purchase US$400 million worth of shares in Glencore International PLC (GLEN.LN)'s initial public offering, making it the second-biggest investor in the IPO of the Swiss commodity trading giant.

In October last year, the Singaporean fund said it increased its stake in blue-chip oil producer China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (0386.HK), or Sinopec, to 5.0%.

This latest investment in Bunge, which posted a 28.4% on-year rise in revenue to US$58.7 billion last year, comes at a time when global food demand and food price inflation are a hot topic for governments.

New-York listed Bunge, a global agribusiness and food processing company, has operations in over 30 countries and employs around 32,000 people.

According to GIC's website, the fund manages more than US$100 billion, but analysts say that the portfolio under management could be as high as US$300 billion.

In GIC's last fiscal year ended March 31, 2011, GIC had said that it had introduced more "flexibility" in its strategic portfolio to respond more nimbly to "significant shocks and market discontinuity."

-By Matthew Allen, Dow Jones Newswires; +65 64154 158; matthew.allen@dowjones.com

-Chun Han Wong contributed to this article

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