The Norges Bank Executive Board has decided to exclude the company China State Construction Engineering Corp. Ltd. due to an unacceptable risk that the company is contributing to or is itself responsible for gross corruption, ref. the conduct-based criterion in section 4 (g) of the Guidelines for Observation and Exclusion from the Government Pension Fund Global.

The decision is based on a recommendation from the Council on Ethics of 22 April 2024.

Furthermore, the Board has decided to exclude the company Tianjin Pharmaceuticals Da Re Tang Group Corp Ltd. due to an unacceptable risk that the company is contributing to severe environmental damage, ref. the conduct-based criterion in section 4 (e) of the Guidelines for Observation and Exclusion from the Government Pension Fund Global.

The decision is based on a recommendation from the Council on Ethics of 25 April 2024.

In addition, the Board has decided to exclude the companies Larsen & Toubro Ltd. and General Dynamics Corp. due to the companies’ production of key components to nuclear weapons, ref. the product-based criterion in section 3 (a) of the Guidelines for Observation and Exclusion from the Government Pension Fund Global.

The decision is based on recommendations from the Council on Ethics of 25 April 2024.

The Board has also decided to exclude the company Prosegur Compania de Seguridad SA due to an unacceptable risk that the company is contributing to serious and systematic human rights violations, ref. the conduct-based criterion in section 4 (a) of the Guidelines for Observation and Exclusion from the Government Pension Fund Global.

The decision is based on a recommendation from the Council on Ethics of 24 April 2024.

Finally, the Board has decided to exclude the company Turning Point Brands Inc due to its production of tobacco or tobacco products, ref. the product-based criterion in section 3 (b) of the Guidelines for Observation and Exclusion from the Government Pension Fund Global.

The decision is based on a recommendation from the Council on Ethics of 13 March 2024.

The Executive Board has not conducted an independent assessment of all aspects of the recommendations but is satisfied that the exclusion criteria have been fulfilled. Before deciding to exclude a company, Norges Bank shall consider whether the use of other measures, including the exercise of ownership rights, may be better suited. The Executive Board concludes that it is not appropriate to use other measures in these cases.

The Council on Ethics’ recommendations:

China State Construction Engineering Corp Ltd
Tianjin Pharmaceutical Da Re Tang Group Corp Ltd
Larsen & Toubro Ltd
Prosegur Cia de Seguridad SA
General Dynamics Corp
Turning Point Brands Inc

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Line Aaltvedt
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Email: press@nbim.no