The New York State Common Retirement Fund is boosting its investment in the FTSERussel TPI Climate Transition Index fund with an additional USD 2 bn, Bloomberg reported on Monday. The new investment in the climate index is part of the pensions fund’s effort to increase its green investments to USD 40 bn and achieve net-zero emissions across its portfolio by 2040. The USD 273.4 bn fund — the US’ third largest pensioners’ fund — currently have USD 25.6 bn invested in climate-related equity.

A trend? Cambridge University and the UN Joint Staff Pension Fund announced earlier thismonth they were reallocating up to USD 750 mn into a new climate bond index expected later this year — dubbed “The Bloomberg Cambridge University Fixed Income Index.” The index is planning to filter out firms increasing oil and gas output and financial institutions that continue to lend them.

NGOs file complaint against EU sustainability law overhaul: Legal NGO ClientEarth, along with seven other campaign groups, submitted a complaint to the European Ombudsman — the EU’s independent watchdog — against an EU proposal that would ease its sustainability laws, according to a press release issued last week. The group claims that the Commission bypassed public consultation and failed to assess the environmental and social consequences of its proposed changes. The complaint also accuses the Commission of “enabling a small group of industry interests to take control” of the deregulation push, pointing to closed-door meetings with industry representatives that took place ahead of publishing the proposal.

Do the claims have solid ground? Oil majors such as Eni, ExxonMobil, and TotalEnergies attended a Commission session in February, according to a meeting invitation list reviewed by Reuters, which showed that NGOs including the World Wildlife Fund and Human Rights Watch were also invited.

REFRESHER- The Commission proposed scaling back ESG rules for most businesses in Europe to cut red tape and boost competitiveness last February. The changes — still to be negotiated and formally approved by the European Parliament — affect four key pillars of the European Green Deal: the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, the EU taxonomy on sustainable investment, the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.

OTHER STORIES WORTH KNOWING ABOUT THIS MORNING-

  • Nissan to pour USD 1.4 bn into China: Nissan will invest USD 1.4 bn in China’s automotive sector by the end of 2026, with a focus on supporting its EV operations. It plans to launch 10 new models by mid-2027, with all models intended for export, excluding to the US. (Bloomberg)
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