Professor John Board appointed as the new Dean of Henley Business School

Munich, 16 October 2013 – There is currently a high level of uncertainty on the international financial markets, due to the budget dispute in the USA surrounding the proposed raising of the borrowing limit. The markets are waiting with bated breath to see whether the Democrats and the Republicans will be able to agree on raising the debt ceiling, which currently stands at just under 17 trillion US dollars. The key question for investors is whether the USA and other countries will be able to pay back the debts they have taken on or whether, as in the case of the debt cut in Greece, they can expect to see losses on their investments. A recent study based on sustainability rating agency oekom research’s country ratings shows that sustainability ratings are a reliable indicator of countries’ solvency and that taking sustainability ratings into account allows investors to make a better assessment of the overall risks.

If you are one of the 37% of consumers who do their Christmas shopping in November1 then you have no doubt answered with an emphatic “yes”. I wonder though, has your buying behaviour been rational?

Those of us who save and invest ethically like to think that we are doing our bit to help the environment or encourage sustainable international development. Are we really making a difference or just making ourselves feel better?