Story of the Week: September 2021

Hey Bankers! How's that ESG thing going for you? By Terence Corcoran Appeared in The Financial Post on September 17, 2021 Gina's Thoughts First Canadian Universities, now Canadian Banks! Yes, the divestment activists are now targeting the Canadian Big Five Banks, starting with RBC and demanding that they 'divest and stop financing fossil fuels." This despite all the ESG positioning the banks do! (For the record, this is where ESG inevitably leads). This action, intended by the activists to strike a blow against climate change, should be regarded as a strike against the prosperity of Canada and Canadians. To divest from the sector that fuels every other sector on our exchanges is folly. Canadian manufacturing, mining, forestry and agriculture are highly energy intensive and need hydrocarbons. As an example, some directors that sit on the board of RBC also sit on the boards of Finning, BCE Inc., Element Fleet, Empire Company and Air Canada -- all companies that could not operate and prosper without hydrocarbons. Will RBC still service and finance these industries and the people that work for these industries? Our banks and bankers need to reject the activist agenda to divest and invest in Canada's hydrocarbon sector for the good of the economy, the environment, shareholders and everyday Canadians.

Ethical investing is a pointless fad with 'no impact', says former BlackRock executive by Simon Foy Appeared in The Telegraph on September 7, 2021 Gina's Thoughts The author states that ESG investing does little to advance its purported goals. InvestNow agrees. However, we do not agree with the author's call for more government influence on capital markets to restrict investment "not in the public interest". ESG has been used to drive the fossil fuel divestment agenda for a decade, and while it has had no impact on demand, it has driven costs up, making our economy less competitive and doing nothing to help the environment. More political intervention will only make things worse - it will mean more regulation, more inefficiencies, and an even less attractive investment climate. We don't need government intervention, we need to invest in the industry that fuels every other industry on our exchanges. We need to invest in Canadian Oil and Gas.

After nearly a decade of resistance, Harvard divests from fossil fuels by Sabrina Shankman Appeared in The Boston Globe on September 10, 2021 Gina's Thoughts By resisting calls to divest for the past decade, Harvard recognized that divestment is an empty political statement without any discernible impact on CO2 emission reductions – the apparent driver for divestment. It has taken 10 years for the mighty Harvard to succumb to the multi-million dollar funded fake grass-roots divestment movement. What has happened in the last ten years? Pledges to divest endowment funds from fossil fuels are up. Emissions are up. Global demand for oil and gas is up. It doesn't take a Harvard graduate to see that something doesn't compute.

CPP oil investment is on the rise by James Rowe, Jessica Dempsey & Zoe Yunker Appeared in the Vancouver Sun on August 12, 2021 Gina's Thoughts While this goes against what divestment activists are calling for, the CPP's continued investment in Canadian hydrocarbons is not surprising. Investment in Canadian hydrocarbons means investment in the most productive sector in Canada. It fulfils a pension plan manager's fiduciary duty to make investments that will provide a good return. And oil and gas is doing just that — the one year return for the S&P/TSX Capped Energy Index is 47%.