Erste AM excludes German car manufacturers from its sustainable investment universe
- BMW and Daimler excluded from the investable sustainability universe due to suspicion of a cartel agreement
- The also involved companies Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche had already been excluded as a result of the diesel emissions scandal
- Erste AM criticises a lack of willingness to find solutions on the part of the German car manufacturers and politicians
Erste AM has excluded BMW and Daimler from its investable sustainability universe until further notice. Due to the suspicion of a cartel agreement, both car manufacturers are therefore no longer investable for the ERSTE RESPONSIBLE line of funds. The also involved companies Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche had already been excluded as a result of the diesel emissions scandal.
The car industry shuns its social and ecological responsibility
The secret agreements among German car manufacturers, which had started in the 1990s according to media reports, represent ground zero of the diesel emissions scandal. It appears that apart from the components of the exhaust gas purification, also software solutions for the dosage of the purification degree have been discussed. “As pioneer and market leader, the German automotive sector bears a huge responsibility. But instead of free competition for the development of the cleanest and most efficient car, it seems backroom deals were made, geared towards stifling this very competition,” says Walter Hatak, Research Analyst and member of the sustainability team of Erste AM. Using such a software does not only constitute a violation of the law, but it also means that the air was being deliberately polluted because of the increased emission of poisonous nitrogen oxides, and as a result, the health of many people was put at risk.
Solutions so far insufficient
The free-of-charge software update that was agreed on at the diesel summit in Berlin at the end of August is no sufficient solution. While the update might possibly improve injection efficiency, it remains to be seen whether this solution will suffice without additional technical measures or an increase of the frequency of “AdBlue”1 top-ups will be required in order to comply with pollution limits. Appropriate consequences of the disclosed cartel and the diesel emissions scandal have to come not only from the German car manufacturers, but also from politicians: “Angela Merkel’s absence from the diesel summit in Berlin illustrates the lack of willingness to come up with solutions among politicians. The loose supervision by the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) has to be improved as well,” as Hatak concludes.
1 “AdBlue” is a name protected by the German Association of the Automotive Industry that denotes a urea compound that is injected into the emission flow of diesel engines in order to convert nitrogen oxides and ammonia into steam and nitrogen
Also have a look on our investment blog and our sustainable online magazine: Dossier Overview - Erste Asset Management (erste-am.com)
Disclaimer
This document is an advertisement. Please refer to the prospectus of the UCITS or to the Information for Investors pursuant to Art 21 AIFMG of the alternative investment fund and the Key Information Document before making any final investment decisions. All data is sourced from Erste Asset Management GmbH, unless indicated otherwise. Our languages of communication are German and English.
The prospectus for UCITS (including any amendments) is published in accordance with the provisions of the InvFG 2011 in the currently amended version. Information for Investors pursuant to Art 21 AIFMG is prepared for the alternative investment funds (AIF) administered by Erste Asset Management GmbH pursuant to the provisions of the AIFMG in connection with the InvFG 2011.
The fund prospectus, Information for Investors pursuant to Art 21 AIFMG, and the Key Information Document can be viewed in their latest versions at the web site www.erste-am.com within the section mandatory publications or obtained in their latest versions free of charge from the domicile of the management company and the domicile of the custodian bank. The exact date of the most recent publication of the fund prospectus, the languages in which the Key Information Document is available, and any additional locations where the documents can be obtained can be viewed on the web site www.erste-am.com. A summary of investor rights is available in German and English on the website www.erste-am.com/investor-rights as well as at the domicile of the management company.
The management company can decide to revoke the arrangements it has made for the distribution of unit certificates abroad, taking into account the regulatory requirements.
Detailed information on the risks potentially associated with the investment can be found in the fund prospectus or Information for investors pursuant to Art 21 AIFMG of the respective fund. If the fund currency is a currency other than the investor's home currency, changes in the corresponding exchange rate may have a positive or negative impact on the value of his investment and the amount of the costs incurred in the fund - converted into his home currency.
Our analyses and conclusions are general in nature and do not take into account the individual needs of our investors in terms of earnings, taxation, and risk appetite. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of the future performance of a fund.
The issue and redemption of unit certificates and the execution of payments to unit holders has been transferred to the Fund's custodian bank/depositary, Erste Group Bank AG, Am Belvedere 1, 1100 Vienna, Austria. Redemption requests can be submitted by investors to their custodian bank, which will forward them to the Custodian Bank/Depositary of the Fund for execution via the usual banking channels. All payments to investors are also processed via the usual banking clearing channel with the investor's custodian bank. In Germany, the issue and return prices of shares are published in electronic form on the web site www.erste-am.com (and also at www.fundinfo.com). Any other information for Shareholders is published in the Bundesanzeiger, Cologne.