State Street Global Advisors (SSGA) has made changes to four of its exchange traded funds to improve its environmental, social and governance approach.
The change, which would see the funds track a different index, would affect the SPDR Dow Jones Global Real Estate fund, SPDR S&P World ex Australia fund, SPDR S&P World ex Australia (hedged) fund and SPDR S&P Emerging Markets fund.
SSGA said the change had been made “in response to investor demand for improved sustainability scores and lower greenhouse gas emissions”.
The real estate fund would become the SPDR Dow Jones Global Select ESG Real Estate fund and have improved sustainability. The SPDR Emerging Markets fund would become the SPDR S&P Emerging Markets Carbon Control fund and would have greatly reduced average carbon intensity and the exclusion of securities that fail to pass ESG screens.
On the World funds, these would become the SPDR S&P World ex Australia Carbon Control/Carbon Control (hedged) fund. They would have reduced average carbon intensity and the exclusion of securities that fail to pass ESG screens.
The changes would come into play from 1 February, 2022, and were not expected to change the funds’ risk/return profile.
Head of SPDR ETF, Meaghan Victor, said: “Investors around the world are increasingly looking to adopt ESG more broadly across their portfolios. They are looking to support the economic transition to net zero carbon emissions, mitigate risk, and express their values and preferences through their investments.
“These funds will continue to deliver investment characteristics similar to their original benchmarks, which means investors can access improved ESG criteria without compromising their portfolio.”
