On the face of it at least, ESG-themed equity funds that claim to locate more firms based on criteria such as carbon intensity, staffing diversity and shareholder control are having a good pandemic. Fund inflows are surging and performance is at least keeping pace.
“The growth opportunity of the century” report describes ESG as representing a “paradigm shift”, the largest fundamental change in the investment landscape since the introduction of exchange traded funds.
Depending on sector, fund managers’ “best ideas” constitute the top five holdings of a selection of top performing funds, or the three most overweight positions. The data is based on the funds’ most recent portfolio disclosures to Morningstar.
Asset managers and investors alike continue to allocate more resources to the area, with responsible investment funds' assets under management having doubled since Q1 2019 to reach £36bn by August 2020, according to Investment Association data.
The destruction of sacred sites in Australia by Rio Tinto has forced the resignations of key executives and highlights the dilemmas faced by ESG investors.
