NZ Superannuation Fund Exits From Tobacco Stocks

Source from:  nasdaq.com (RTTNews) 10/24/2007

Tuesday, the New Zealand Superannuation Fund announced its intention to exit from investments in tobacco stocks. The Fund had invested $37.6 million in tobacco stocks, the Guardians of the Fund said. This represented 0.3% of total holdings of the Fund. The Fund, was started in 2003 to help fund pension costs for an ageing population, and has $13.1 billion under management. The Fund has a transparent framework for responsible investment assessments. As a responsible shareholder, the Fund strives to engage with the companies or the industry sector concerned in a dialogue, in situations where the Guardians' responsible investment standards cannot be met. The Fund acts along with other likeminded investors to find mutually acceptable solutions. The exclusion or divestment decision is considered only when the positive engagement with the companies fail. The decision to exit from tobacco stocks was made by the Guardians after applying a set of guidelines that enable the Fund to evaluate investments in relation to environmental, social and governance issues against the touchstone of relevant international norms, New Zealand law and Crown actions. In the present case, the Guardians concluded that the Fund's investment in the tobacco sector was inconsistent with their responsible investment standards, based on safety issues and New Zealand's commitment to specific international conventions, the Guardians' Chief Executive Officer, Adrian Orr said. While the preferred approach was to engage with the company or sector, in the case of the tobacco sector this was inconsistent with the long-term goals of the Fund as a shareholder and with the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, he said, adding, "the Guardians continue to assess other industry issues." However, the present action cannot be considered as a precedent for future decisions, analysts observed. Enditem