2010-01-04 20:52:42.157 GMT
By Sree Vidya Bhaktavatsalam
Jan. 4 (Bloomberg) -- TIAA-CREF, the nonprofit firm that manages $402 billion, sold shares of four companies that do business in Sudan after they didn't continue talks on ending human-rights violations in the Darfur region.
TIAA-CREF sold all its shares of PetroChina Co. Ltd., CNPC Hong Kong, Oil and Natural Gas Corp. and Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co. as of Dec. 31, the New York-based money manager said today in a statement. TIAA-CREF still holds shares of Kuala Lumpur-based Petronas, which has acknowledged TIAA-CREF's concerns, the firm said.
Investors Against Genocide, a Boston-based human-rights group, has pressured mutual-fund companies to adopt socially responsible investment practices and shun companies that do business with Sudan. TIAA-CREF's holdings in the four companies represented about $58 million as of Sept. 30, according to data compiled by the activist group.
TIAA-CREF began in March to push companies that it owns to help end genocide in Darfur. At the time, TIAA-CREF said it would divest from those companies that didn't engage in a "productive dialogue" on how to end violence.
As many as 300,000 people have died in the conflict in Darfur since 2003, according to estimates from the United Nations. The U.S. government has accused Sudan's government of committing genocide in Darfur.
TIAA-CREF manages money for teachers, academic researchers and medical professionals.