Top Fund’s Blacklist Shows ESG Coming for Emerging Markets
- Candriam bond fund excludes Russia, China, Saudi Arabia
- Government borrowing costs don’t currently reflect ESG ratings
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A top-performing emerging-market bond fund is avoiding investments in Russia, China and Saudi Arabia as the three countries score too low in its ratings for environmental, social and governance risks.
The $1.5 billion Candriam SRI Bond Emerging Markets Fund has outperformed almost 90% of peers in the past three years and screens for ESG factors. The bottom 25% of countries on the fund’s ranking get blacklisted, no matter how big a role they play in the bond world.