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An A+ was awarded for the strategy and
governance, listed equity incorporation, and fixed-income SSA
modules
TORONTO, Sept. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - Manulife Investment
Management announced today that it has been recognized with
top scores from the United Nations-supported Principles for
Responsible Investment (PRI) annual assessment report. For the
second year in a row, Manulife Investment Management received a
score of A+ for strategy and governance from the PRI for
integrating environmental, social, and governance (ESG)
considerations into investment practices across a range of asset
classes. An A+ was also awarded in the listed equity and
fixed-income sovereign, supranational, and agency (SSA) integration
modules.
Other notable achievements included:
- Manulife Investment Management's public markets received an A
in all other direct investment and active ownership PRI modules for
which it was assessed. Other modules covered its investments in
corporate bonds and securitized debt. Manulife Investment
Management saw notable increases in its scores as compared to 2018
in areas such as: communications regarding ESG screens, and
integration and implementation of analysis of the ESG information
for internally managed listed equity holdings. There was also
improvement in the number of companies engaged with and the
intensity of engagement and effort. Similarly, for fixed income,
Manulife Investment Management saw improvements in the integration
and implementation of the ESG issues reviewed and its disclosure of
approach with the public. For securitized, an outcome of either
financial/ESG performance was also noted as an additional
assessment indicator.
- Manulife Investment Management's private markets continued to
be recognized as a leader with real estate receiving an A for the
third consecutive year under the property module. In addition,
Manulife Investment Management demonstrated its commitment to
sustainable investing within private markets by expanding the scope
of the assessment in 2019 to include submissions for infrastructure
and private equity, achieving a B in each respective module.
"Manulife Investment Management strives to be a leader in ESG
investment practices as a responsible steward of client capital,"
said Christopher P. Conkey, CFA,
global head of public markets, Manulife Investment Management. "We
are very proud of our investment teams for achieving an A+ for ESG
strategy and governance for the second year in a row and for
earning superior marks in the screening, integration, and
engagements modules for listed equities and in direct fixed-income
SSA. This is not only important for our clients who entrust us to
implement ESG for specific portfolio goals, but also for the
overall relevance of our strategies as we look to the future of
investment management."
"Sustainability is one of the keys to creating long-term
value for our clients within private markets," added
Stephen J. Blewitt, global head of
private markets. "It is important for us to consider sustainability
because we're generally long-term investors across a
diverse range of private markets asset classes and submitting to
the PRI is an opportunity for us to demonstrate transparency while
tracking our progress. It is rewarding for the work we have done to
be recognized."
The key activities within Manulife Investment Management's
investment teams in 2019, which helped to achieve the PRI scores
include:
- The release of its inaugural sustainable and responsible
investment report in 2019.
- Increased integration in industry analysis, sovereign analysis,
and securitized fixed income. Manulife Investment Management
developed a proprietary sovereign ESG assessment model in 2019,
which is currently in use by its investment teams as an input into
credit analysis. The model produces sovereign-specific baseline
views on ESG issues.
- The use of scenario analysis—a key tool for companies in
demonstrating planning for climate change.
- Engagement with 724 companies in 940 separate engagements
across all investment teams. In 2019, 26% of engagements had an
environmental factor focus, 20% had a social factor focus, and 54%
had a governance factor focus.
For more information on Manulife Investment Management, please
visit manulifeim.com/institutional
About Manulife Investment Management
Manulife
Investment Management is the global wealth and asset management
segment of Manulife Financial Corporation. We draw on more than a
century of financial stewardship and the full resources of our
parent company to serve individuals, institutions, and retirement
plan members worldwide. Headquartered in Toronto, our leading capabilities in public
and private markets are strengthened by an investment footprint
that spans 17 countries and territories. We complement these
capabilities by providing access to a network of unaffiliated asset
managers from around the world. We're committed to investing
responsibly across our businesses. We develop innovative global
frameworks for sustainable investing, collaboratively engage with
companies in our securities portfolios, and maintain a high
standard of stewardship where we own and operate assets, and we
believe in supporting financial well-being through our workplace
retirement plans. Today, plan sponsors around the world rely on our
retirement plan administration and investment expertise to
help their employees plan for, save for, and live a better
retirement.
As of June 30, 2020, Manulife
Investment Management had CAD$900
billion (US$660 billion) in
assets under management and administration. Not all offerings
are available in all jurisdictions. For additional information,
please visit manulifeim.com.
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SOURCE Manulife Investment Management