Socially responsible investing
The future global investment theme!

Taking responsibility for environmental and social issues has never been more popular in the investment world. Figures from the Investment Management Association (IMA) show that there has been a huge leap in the amount put into ethical funds in the last year.

Perception is changing rapidly. Open any newspaper and the chances are you'll find an item on issues such as climate change or freshwater scarcity. Faced with rising fuel prices, water shortages and concerns over food quality, consumers are changing their investment attitudes.

The past few years have seen the emergence of ethical funds in a range of asset classes. You can now invest your money in ethical bonds, property and hedge funds and even spread betting. Dealing with climate change is likely to be the biggest global investment theme of the next few decades and beyond.
Last year, several of the top-performing funds in the UK followed an ethical investment mandate. There is generally an increased awareness of ethical issues such as climate control and the depletion of natural resources, and so ethical funds are currently very high profile.

There is a broad definition of what constitutes an ethical fund. To some it means avoiding certain polluting industries, such as oil; to others it involves actively providing investment in clean, sustainable projects. Others view ethical investment as a commitment to using shares to vote against bad ethical practice in companies.

After some 20 years in the wilderness, ethical investment has now entered the mainstream. According to Ethical Investment Research Service (EIRIS), a charity that carries out independent research into corporate behaviour, the ethical retail fund market was worth £7bn at the end of 2006.

If you require any further information about the services that we provide or would like to review your financial planning position, please email or contact us.

Levels and bases of, and reliefs from, taxation are subject to change.
Article date: 08.07

Articles are copyright protected by Goldmine Publishing Limited 2007. Terms and conditions apply. Unauthorised duplication or distribution is strictly forbidden.
Go Back

Absolute Financial Management Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. The Financial Services Authority does not regulate taxation and trust advice and some aspects of buy to let arrangements.

We are entered on the FSA Register No 401135 at www.fsa.gov.uk/register. Registered in England No.05027747.
Registered Address: 50 Havelock Road, Hastings, East Sussex, TN34 1BE

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.

There may be a fee for mortgage advice, the precise amount of the fee will depend upon your circumstances. Please contact us for an estimate.

The guidance and/or advice contained within the website is subject to the UK regulatory regime and is therefore primarily targeted at customers in the United Kingdom.

Site by BedfordBeck