News - Dow Jones turns dharmic

by Life Positive

The new indexes will measure the performance of companies selected according to the value systems and principles of dharmic religions, especially Hinduism and Buddhism.

The Dow Jones Dharma Indexes are the first faith-based indexes created to measure faith-compliant equities.

The Dow Jones Dharma Index series includes the Dow Jones Dharma Global Index, as well as four country indexes for the US, Britain, Japan and India. "We are honoured to be serving a demand for faith-based investing. Bringing our religious values onto the global stage offers sustainable solutions to the problems facing the world today. The principle of dharma contains precepts relevant to good conduct, and the implicit requirement of mindfulness about the sources of wealth – and therefore responsible investing," said Nitesh Gor, CEO of Dharma Investments.

The Dow Jones Dharma Index plans to screen companies on a combination of environmental, social, governance and traditional sin sector filters. "The Index will not just have appeal to the religious, but to a far broader audience as well. If one has to be included in the listings, the company must pass a set of industry, environmental, corporate governance and qualitative screens for Dharmic compliance," Gor explained. Dharma Investments said environmental screens would include company's impact or policies with respect to emissions, climate change and carbon footprint analysis, oil and chemical spills and waste management and recycling.

Companies from sectors where the nature of their business activities and operations have been termed unacceptable are excluded from the index.

"Brewers, casinos and gaming, pharmaceuticals, tobacco, alcohol, adult entertainment, animal testing and genetic modification of agricultural products are unacceptable," said Gor.

A welcome initiative, surely?