Good new report here
-- Burt Hamner
-----Original Message-----
From: UNEP FI ebulletin [mailto:
ebulletin@UNEPFI.ORG]
Sent: Thursday, July 13, 2006 11:52 PM
To:
UNEPFI@PEACH.EASE.LSOFT.COM
Subject: **FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - UNEP FI's latest report "Show Me The
Money"
Importance: High
MEDIA ADVISORY - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
UNEP and partner investment companies launch a landmark report:
"Show Me The Money"
Geneva, 14 July 2006: FOURTEEN of the world's largest investment companies
today launch a ground-breaking report for the United Nations Environment
Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI).
The report, entitled "Show Me the Money", confirms the growing importance
of environmental, social and governance (ESG) concerns to the global
investment industry. UNEP FI is a unique public-private partnership
between UNEP and more than 160 banks, insurers and asset managers.
"There is a growing worldwide understanding of the pivotal role the
investment community and capital market actors have to play in addressing
critical ESG challenges, " explained Achim Steiner, UNEP Executive
Director and United Nations Undersecretary General.
"At the same time, the mainstream investment community is waking to the
burgeoning opportunities associated with sustainability promoting
companies, technologies and investment funds. From clean-tech, to
renewables and ecosystem services, the growth industries of the 21st
century are emerging at an accelerated pace," added the head of UNEP.
"Show Me The Money" is a 47-page summary report synthesising more than
1,000 pages of research from the mainstream financial analyst community.
The report draws on work by a group of leading financial institutions* and
covers the impact of qualitative and new risk issues on company value.
Industries covered include the auto-industry, aerospace and defense, the
media, and the food and beverage industries.
Highlights from several of the sector reports include:
On corporate governance issues the Deutsche Bank AG's report states:
"Recognising the materiality of corporate governance on equity performance
and valuation is just one step on the path to more rigorous equity
analysis..It is now increasingly accepted that corporate governance,
environmental and social factors are components of a company's equity risk
premium."
On obesity and the food and beverage industry JP Morgan Securities Ltd's
report states: "Growing awareness of the relationship between diet and
health and in particular of serious health risks posed by obesity is
having a major impact on consumer purchasing behaviours and choices that
will durably impact and reshape the food and beverages industry."
The media sector report by Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research
states: "We find that companies that demonstrate leadership on our ESG
framework, a proxy for quality of management over the long term, lead
their sub-sector peers on long-term cash returns. In addition, we also
focus on companies showing improvement in ESG performance as we believe
that such companies possess a view towards management for the long term,
likely to result in improvements in cash returns"
The auto industry report by CM-CIC Securities states: "The rise in
resource prices and particularly the exploding oil price is the hard
lesson that the automakers need, to understand that current modes of
combustion probably do not constitute the long-term solution. The industry
must begin looking for alternatives. Automakers, oil companies,
governments and consumers all need to start preparing themselves today for
the reality of long-term high prices for black gold."
"Show Me the Money" is the second such synthesis report in the UNEP FI
"Materiality Series" launched by the partnerships Asset Management Working
Group. The first "Materiality Report", published in June 2004, explored
the impact of ESG risks on the equity value of listed companies in
different industry and business sectors. The report launched today builds
on this work and provides coverage across additional industry sectors.
"Show Me the Money" is published just over two months after United Nations
Secretary General Kofi Annan launched the United Nations Principles for
Responsible Investment (see
www.unpri.org). More than 70 institutional
investors from 16 countries and representing more than USD 4.5 Trillion
have now signed the UNPRI.
"With the launch of both UNPRI and "Show Me the Money" we can see that
some of the largest and most concentrated pools of capital are sending
clear signals to the whole investment chain indicating that ESG issues are
material and must be integrated into investment analysis, decision-making
and action," explained Paul Clements-Hunt, Head , UNEP Finance Initiative.
####
To download "Show Me The Money" please visit:
http://www.unepfi.org/fileadmin/documents/show_me_the_money.pdf
*Participating institutions include: ABN Amro Real Corretora, CM-CIC
securities, Deutsche Bank AG/London, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein
Securities Limited, Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research, JP Morgan
Securities Ltd, Merrill Lynch Global Securities Research & Economics
Group, Morgan Stanley & Co. International Limited, UBS Limited and WestLB
AG.
About UNEP FI
The United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) is a
unique global partnership between UNEP and the financial services sector.
UNEP FI works with 160 financial institutions - banks, insurers, asset
managers, and pension funds - to develop and promote linkages between
sustainability and financial performance. UNEP FI is the oldest and
largest partnership between the UN and the global financial sector. UNEP
FI promotes the adoption of best environmental and sustainability practice
at all levels of financial institution operations. For more information on
UNEP FI, see:
http://www.unepfi.org/
About UNEP FI Asset Management Working Group (AMWG)
A global platform of asset managers that collaborate to drive the
mainstream integration of ESG issues in investment decision-making and
ownership practices. The Working Group consists of 14 asset managers with
combined mandates of 1.7 trillion USD. Members include:
ABN AMRO Asset Management
Acuity Funds
BNP Paribas Asset Management
Calvert Group
ClearBridge Advisors, Legg Mason
Groupama Asset Management
Henderson Global Investors
Hermes Pensions Management Ltd
HSBC Halbis Partners
Insight Investment
Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp
Morley Fund Management
RCM (Allianz Global Investors)
Sanpaolo AM, Eurizon Financial Group
For more information on UNEP FI, see:
http://www.unepfi.org/work_programme/investment/amwg/
About the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI)
There is a growing view among investment professionals that environmental,
social and governance (ESG) issues can affect the performance of
investment portfolios. Investors fulfilling their fiduciary (or
equivalent) duty therefore need to give appropriate consideration to these
issues, but to date have lacked a framework for doing so. The Principles
for Responsible Investment provide this framework.
The Principles are voluntary and aspirational. They are not prescriptive,
but instead provide a menu of possible actions for incorporating ESG
issues into mainstream investment decision-making and ownership practices.
The Principles were launched by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan after he
rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange on 27th April, 2006
For more information on the UN PRI, see:
http://www.unpri.org/
Media Contacts:
Paul Clements-Hunt, Head of Unit, UNEP Finance Initiative (Geneva)
Tel: +41-79-349-54-86
Email:
pch@unep.ch
Nick Nuttall, UNEP Spokesperson, Office of the Executive Director (Nairobi)
Tel: +254 207 623084
Mobile: +254-733-632755 or +41-79-596-5737
Email:
nick.nuttall@unep.org
Asset Management Working Group Media Contacts:
Co-Chair of the Working Group:
Vincent Zeller, CIO and General Manager, Groupama Asset Management
Tel: +33 1 44 56 57 45
Email:
vzeller@groupama-am.fr
Co-Chair of the Working Group:
Carlos Joly, Advisor to the CEO, Groupama Asset Management
Tel: +33 6 7756 4596
Email:
carlos.joly@gmail.com
North American Member:
Julie Gorte, Vice President & Chief Social Investment Strategist, Calvert
Group
Tel: +1 301 657 7039
Email:
Julie.gorte@calvert.com
North American Member:
Mary Jane McQuillen, Director Social Awareness Investment, ClearBridge
Advisors
Legg Mason
Tel: +1 212 559 0937
Email:
MJMcQuillen@LeggMason.com
UK Member:
Colin Melvin, Managing Director, Hermes Equity Ownership Service, Hermes
Pensions Management Ltd
Tel: +44 207 680 2251
Email:
c.melvin@hermes.co.uk
Latin America:
Pedro Villiani, SRI Equities Portfolio Manager, ABN Amro Real
Tel: +55 11 3174 6683
Email:
pedro.angeli.villani@br.abnamro.com