Investors view the environment as a major long-term investing opportunity, according to the results of a survey of investors released by Allianz Global Investors, a global investment firm.

Of the 1,003 investors surveyed, nearly half (49%) said that over the next 12 months they were likely to invest in a company or mutual fund looking to provide solutions for environmental problems; 17% reported having already made such an investment.

“The environment is a fertile investment area at an early stage of growth,” said Bozena Jankowska, lead portfolio manager of the Allianz RCM Global EcoTrends Fund, a continuously offered closed-end interval fund, and head of the RCM Sustainability Research Team. “It is one of the few sectors where the public and politicians are in alignment and inclined to act. As popular sentiment grows and legislation continues to tighten, technological innovation will accelerate, laying the groundwork for great investment opportunities.”

The poll of 1,003 adults examined investors’ understanding of and attitudes toward the environment, absolutely and with specific regard to investing. The poll was conducted via the Internet between December 14 and December 20, 2007 by GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media, a division of GfK Custom Research North America. Participants had to be age 25 or older and have primary or shared responsibility for investment decisions in households with financial assets of at least $100,000. The sample was weighted to match the characteristics of the total online population in terms of gender, age, and region, according to the U.S. Census.

Green is the New Black

Better than seven in 10 investors (71%) deemed environmental technology a “buy”, the most desirable sector of the six surveyed.3 More than half (54%) said that environmental investing will be an “important focus” for them in the future.

“Protecting the environment is a social and political imperative, and, increasingly, an investing priority as well,” Jankowska said. “Our research shows that investors understand that significant environmental issues represent potential lucrative opportunities for businesses endeavoring to bring real solutions to a global market.”

Investors expressed strong familiarity with environmental issues. Seventy-three percent said they knew at least a fair amount about the Greenhouse Effect and 73% said they knew at least a fair amount about the Energy Star energy efficiency rating. That compares with 77% who said they knew at least a fair amount about mutual funds.

Seventy-one percent of respondents said environmental investments offered the potential for long-term capital growth. In terms of specific investment opportunities, 62% of investors said they consider solar energy a major investment opportunity. It was followed by wind power (57%), hybrid vehicles (53%), and water purification (50%). Ethanol (cited as a major opportunity by 37% of investors) and Eco-tourism (17%) were the least highly rated sectors.

“Environmental investing is not a passing fancy, but a substantial opportunity with real staying power,” Jankowska said. “As an investment, the environment has all the hallmarks of information technology in the early 90s – popular attention, robust demand, high innovation, abundant capital, an enduring need and rising valuations. We believe that we are in the early stages of a long-term secular up-cycle for environment-related companies.”

More at www.allianzinvestors.com

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