Recent media reports on our investments in the Middle East
You may have seen reports in the Financial Times, the Times, the Daily Telegraph and in other places this week relating to USS reducing its investments in the Middle East.
We want to be clear that, as trustee, we can only make investment decisions on financial best interest grounds. Our in-house investment team at USS Investment Management (USSIM) make value-based decisions every day, across financial markets, in seeking to achieve the investment returns the scheme needs to pay members’ benefits. The decisions that have been reported on this week were made on that basis, and that basis alone.
Some commentators have stated, or implied, that we have excluded Israel from our investment portfolio. We have not. It is also wrong to state, or imply, that our decisions were made for anything other than financial reasons. They were not made in response to the range of views USS members may have, and nor were they any form of comment on events other than the financial circumstances.
As we made clear in the scheme’s 2024 Report and Accounts: “We have actively monitored the implications of ongoing events on our investment outlook. We continue to keep our portfolio and broader positions under regular review; in response to the financial risks that became apparent, we have reduced our exposure to the region.”
More information about our legal obligations when it comes to investing, and our approach to commenting on our investments, is available on our website.