UPDATED: Factual errors in Xinjiang forced labour report mistake investor links
Brunel has been incorrectly listed as highly exposed to Xinjiang-linked companies in a report published by Hong Kong Watch and a professor at Sheffield Hallam University.
The report claims Brunel manages an Emerging Markets passive portfolio. We do not. We manage an active Emerging Markets portfolio.
It therefore assumes the portfolio simply replicates the index, investing in all its constituents. The portfolio does not.
As a result, it places Brunel high up in a table of UK Local Authority pension schemes most exposed to companies linked to forced labour in Xinjiang. If the information was correct, Brunel would not appear on the list.
We have contacted both the lead academic and Hong Kong Watch to request an urgent correction. We will also request a retraction to be posted.
We are committed to human rights and social issues as one of our core RI thematic priorities and we report on our progress annually in this area (see page 46 of our 2020-21 Outcomes Report). Such mistakes can therefore be deeply damaging.