Global investor group urges United States to rejoin Paris climate accord

The coalition of European and some US funds joined other investor groups in Asia, Australia and New Zealand in issuing a joint statement calling for a US return to the Paris pact.

The statement was timed for release on Wednesday morning, after US election polls were due to be closed, indicating how the withdrawal from the Paris deal remains a contested issue. BlackRock did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden said in the run-up to Tuesday’s US presidential election that he would take the country back into the Paris accord.rump campaigned at the last election on a promise to leave, saying the deal would hit the US economy. He was bound by U.N. rules to wait until Nov. 4, 2019, to begin a year-long process required for a country to exit. No other country has left.

Mindy Lubber, chief executive of sustainability advocacy group Ceres, which also signed the statement, said withdrawing from Paris was a ”monumental mistake,” but pointed to climate pledges by US states and companies as signs of progress.

”There’s a reason investors are standing up and saying let’s get back into the Paris Agreement because they believe it’s good for the economy as well as good for the environment and our future,” Lubber told Reuters.