Новости/Аналитика

The State Pension Fund of Norway, for ethical reasons, is getting rid of shares in companies that are legally engaged in the production of recreational marijuana in Canada. "The Fund does not invest in entities that, themselves or through organizations they control, can produce cannabis for narcotic purposes." It has been announced that Canada's Aurora Cannabis, Canopy Growth Corp, Cronos Group and Tilray Brands will be excluded from the world's largest sovereign government pension fund.

In the global hemp market, trends are becoming more and more acute, according to which the consumer wants to receive the highest quality hemp raw materials, which have significant therapeutic potential, at the lowest prices. This leads to the fact that in the economically developed countries of the world the possibilities for growing plants with therapeutic properties in households, the wide distribution and active development of food products, cosmetics, various additives based on the therapeutic properties of the hemp plant, as well as the huge losses of companies , which until recently put the production of hemp raw materials in greenhouses and premises at the forefront. One of the latest manifestations of the decline in the market for companies specializing in the production of medical cannabis and recreational marijuana in greenhouses and indoors is the decision of representatives of the world's largest Norwegian pension fund to exclude from its portfolio, for ethical reasons, the shares of Canadian enterprises, which, among other things, specialize in the cultivation, processing and sales of recreational marijuana.

The Ethics Council of the Norwegian State Pension Fund - Global (GPFG) has recommended that 4 of the largest Canadian hemp companies be excluded from their investment portfolio because they produce recreational marijuana. Fund manager Norges Bank Investment Management announced that Aurora Cannabis, Canopy Growth Corp, Cronos Group and Tilray Brands (all companies based in Canada) will be excluded from the world's largest sovereign government pension fund.

Companies are excluded on the basis that "the fund does not invest in entities that, themselves or through organizations they control, can produce cannabis for narcotic purposes." The decision is based on the recommendations of the Ethics Council dated March 30, 2022 and May 3, 2022.

Norges Bank Investment Management's actions are another blow to Canada's largest hemp companies, which have seen their share prices plummet in recent years as losses run into the billions of dollars. In order to demonstrate the negative trends observed in the market of companies specializing in the production of recreational marijuana, it is necessary to understand their losses over the past 12 months:

• 78% for “Aurora Cannabis” - traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange and Nasdaq;

• 77% for Canopy Growth Corp - traded on TSE and Nasdaq;

• 73% for Tilray Brands - traded on Nasdaq and TSE;

• 48% for Cronos Group - traded on TSE and Nasdaq.

Commentary of the specialists of the “Ukrainian Industrial Hemp Association”

The State Pension Fund of Norway, for ethical reasons, is getting rid of shares in companies that are legally engaged in the production of recreational marijuana in Canada. Consists of two separate sovereign wealth funds owned by the Norwegian government:

• State Pension Fund - Global (former State Oil Fund);

• State Pension Fund - Norway (former State Insurance Fund).

Back in 2019, the State Pension Fund of Norway said it would “no longer own stakes” in psychoactive cannabis companies. The Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG) was established in 1990 to invest excess earnings from the Norwegian oil sector. As of 2021, the fund owns stakes in 9,202 companies in 74 countries, with a value of just over $1.3 trillion in assets, which is approximately equal to 1.5% of the global stock market and makes it the world's largest national wealth fund .

NASDAQ (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation) is one of the major US stock exchanges, specializing in shares of high-tech companies.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) is the fourth in the world and the first in Asia in terms of market capitalization of the companies represented.

The Toronto Stock Exchange is one of the largest stock exchanges in the world.

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