Economics and Ethics are Focus of Reports
Apr 21st, 2008 • Posted in: NewsEthical investments turn sour in Britain, but some say it’s only temporary; finance ministers say it is immoral to use crops to produce biofuels when millions are hungry; and Congress continues to debate “moral hazard” of mortgage bailout
LONDON and WASHINGTON
Economic controversies centering on ethics disputes made news last week. Among the stories:
- Recent disappointing performances by ethical investment funds are leading some U.K. analysts to wonder if they are particularly productive financial vehicles, according to ThisIsMoney.com, a Web-based publication of the London Evening Standard. In the past 12 months ending April 1, ethical funds lost 9.5 percent on average, compared to an average downturn of 4.7 percent for traditionally managed funds, according to the site. But some analysts maintain that the sharp downturn is related to transitory market factors, and many predict that the sector will rebound.
- Finance ministers from around the globe gathered recently to consider a serious problem with a major ethical component: food shortages. The Wall Street Journal reports that riots related to soaring food costs have broken out in parts of Africa, while in Asia, troops have been deployed to protect food supplies from theft. The problem is compounded by the moral dilemma spawned by policies pushing the use of food products for biofuels. India’s finance minister, Palaniappan Chidambaram, told the Journal he considers it a “crime against humanity that food should be diverted to biofuels” when “millions of people are going hungry.”
- Massachusetts congressman Barney Frank is proposing a refinance bill to allow strapped homeowners to receive federally insured new mortgages even if they are way behind on their payments and have poor credit, according to CNN. The debate continues to focus on a variety of moral arguments, notes the report: Critics say it is unfair to burden taxpayers with the risk of foreclosures, and also argue it is wrong to bail out homeowners who knowingly overreached when they made their purchases — a move they say will exacerbate the “moral hazard” involved in the government rewarding risky behavior.
Sources: London Evening Standard, Apr. 17 — CNN, Apr. 17 — Wall Street Journal, Apr. 14.
For more information, see: Related Newsline story, Apr. 7 — Related Newsline story, Apr. 7 — Related Newsline story, Mar. 31 — Related Newsline story, Mar. 17 — Related Newsline story, Oct. 10, 2007.
Print This Story
Email This Story
[...] more information, see: Related Newsline story, Apr. 21 — Related Newsline story, Apr. 7 — Related Newsline story, Feb. 11 [...]
[...] more information, see: Related Newsline story, May 19 — Related Newsline story, Apr. 21 — Related Newsline story, Apr. 7 — Related Newsline story, Feb. 25 [...]