The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) has bought a 44 per cent stake in the $8.6bn Manhattan West mixed-use development project in New York.

The developer is Brookfield Property Partners, whose subsidiary formed a joint venture with the QIA.

“This joint venture is an example of our strategy to invest in high-quality real estate with strong partners,” said Sheikh Abdulla bin Mohammed bin Saud al-Thani, CEO of QIA, in a press release. “It is also a further demonstration of QIA’s long-term confidence in the US market.”

The 7 million-square-foot development consists of five residential and commercial towers, which are up to 67 storeys high. It also includes a two-acre park and 200,000 square feet of retail space.

The QIA announced it would invest $35bn in the US on opening its New York office in September, as part of its geographical diversification strategy.

The sovereign wealth fund also took a 37.5 per cent stake in Australia’s $6bn Barangaroo South financial complex in Sydney, developed by the local Land Lease. It appears the fund is investing heavily in real estate.

However, the QIA has also made some high-profile divestments from construction firms in recent months.

The QIA has assets of $256bn, according to the US-based Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute. However, the UK daily Financial Times estimates the fund has lost $12bn in the third quarter of 2015 due to exposure to troubled German carmaker Volkswagen, Swiss-based commodities giant Glencore and the Agricultural Bank of China.