Texas governor orders agencies to sell assets in China

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has ordered state agencies to stop investing in China and sell assets there as soon as possible.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued the order, citing financial and security risks, a sign that escalating tensions between the U.S. and China are beginning to impact global capital flows, according to Reuters today, November 22.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott speaks at an event in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (USA) on July 17.

In a letter to state agencies dated November 21 and posted on his website, Governor Abbott (a Republican) wrote that China's "aggressive actions" have increased the risks to Texas investments in China and urged investors to withdraw.

"I am instructing Texas investment firms that you are prohibited from making any new investments with state funds in China. If you have any existing investments in China, you must divest them at the first opportunity," Abbott wrote in the letter.

In the letter, Governor Abbott stated that he had instructed the University of Texas/Texas A&M Investment Management Company (UTIMCO), which manages nearly $80 billion, to divest from China earlier this year.

There is currently no information on the reaction from UTIMCO or China to Mr. Abbott's order.

Texas state agencies also include the Texas Teachers' Retirement System, which had $210.5 billion under management at the end of August, according to the organization's annual report.

Texas has taken an increasingly proactive stance on investments from its agencies, which previously restricted public pension funds from doing business with companies that adhered to environmental, social, and governance principles, according to Reuters.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/thong-doc-texas-ra-lenh-cho-cac-co-quan-ban-tai-san-o-trung-quoc-185241122173342531.htm