An index that screens out companies involved in activities that Catholics might find unsuitable for investment, such as firms in the contraceptives and chemical weapons industries, has been launched by S&P Dow Jones Indices (SPDJI).
The S&P 500 Catholic Values Index is designed to screen out companies whose business practices do not adhere to the socially responsible investment guidelines outlined by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, including biological weapons manufacturers and companies active in the abortion trade.
The index has been licensed to Global X Funds, an exchange-traded funds provider, for product development.
It is the first Catholic index based on a prominent benchmark.
Father Séamus Finn, chief of faith consistent investing at the Oblate International Pastoral Investment Trust, says: “I welcome the creation of the S&P 500 Catholic Values Index and support its specific selection rules. It is important that investors now have a representative measure of the performance of those S&P 500 companies that adhere to the Socially Responsible Investment Guidelines as outlined by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.”
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