Morgan Stanley lowered its expectations for cutting emissions in its corporate lending portfolio.

Jessica Alsford, chief sustainability officer of the mentioned financial institution, commenting on the specified decision while talking to media representatives, said that the world is demonstrating too slow a pace of transition to a greener economy. She also highlighted some of the factors that hamper progress in the relevant process. In this context, the slowdown in sales of electric vehicles, the slow adoption of biofuels in aviation, and financial and policy difficulties in the power sector were mentioned. It is worth noting that these are not all factors that harm the prospects for progress in the transition to a more environmentally friendly economy.

Some banks, such as the Dutch firm ING, have reduced the volume of loans to some customers, including in the oil and gas sector. Morgan Stanley does not plan to implement such solutions too quickly. Given the current external situation, the financial institution intends to adhere to an approach aimed at capping global warming at 1.5 to 1.7 degrees Celsius. It is worth noting that the bank’s previous target of a straight 1.5 degrees was softened. The relevant information is contained in the first financial institution’s major climate update in the last three years.

Jessica Alsford stated that the current technologies and the current policies are not fully aligned with 1.5 degrees, and by having that range of 1.5 to 1.7 it’s acknowledging the challenges that the global economy faces whilst being aligned, still, with the Paris Agreement.

As we have reported earlier, Morgan Stanley Earnings Exceed Estimates.