AP4 sells holdings in cluster-bomb companies

The Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund (AP4) is selling its holdings in companies that market cluster munitions. These holdings are being sold on the advice of the Ethical Council of the Swedish National Pension Funds, which has studied the convention banning cluster munitions, a convention endorsed by Sweden in May 2008.

In its analysis, the Ethical Council has determined that the business operations of these companies contravene the convention. It has therefore recommended that the First to Fourth Swedish National Pension Funds should exclude these companies from their portfolios.

The companies to be excluded are:

  • Alliant Techsystems (USA)
  • GenCorp (USA)
  • General Dynamics (USA)
  • Hanwha Corporation (South Korea)
  • L-3 Communications (USA)
  • Lockheed Martin (USA)
  • Poongsan (South Korea)
  • Raytheon (USA)
  • Textron (USA).

- The Ethical Council has carried out an exhaustive analysis of a large number of defence contractors and has concluded that these companies should be excluded as objects for investment by the First to Fourth Swedish National Pension Funds. The issue concerns inhuman weapons that often injure innocent civilians, an issue that demands action which now has the support of a convention that bans such weapons, states Carl Rosén, who chairs the Ethical Council of the Swedish National Pension Funds.

For further details, please contact:
Carl Rosén, Chairman of the Ethical Council of the Swedish National Pension Funds
+46 (0)31-7042900.