Sumitomo Corp shareholders defeated a resolution requiring the firm to align its business with international climate change targets at their annual general meeting.
The Japanese trading house's board is against the proposal.
Sumitomo is involved in two coal power projects in Asia, Vietnam's Van Phong 1 station and Bangladesh's Matarbari plant.
Companies and banks are being discouraged from investing in or financing fossil fuel projects like coal power plants, which is still strongly supported in Japan.
Eric Christian Pedersen, head of responsible investments at Danish fund manager Nordea Asset Management, noted that the proposal help investors correctly assess the company's transition risk and ambition level in addressing climate change.
The 2015 Paris Agreement requires countries to limit temperature rises to within 1.5-2 degrees Celsius of pre-industrial levels by curbing emissions.
Sachi Suzuki, senior engager at EOS at Federated Hermes, said they are not convinced that Sumitomo's net-zero commitment for 2050 and policy updates are not sufficiently aligned to limit global warming to 1.5C as it allows various exceptions and would not affect the plants already under construction.
A similar proposal was put before shareholders of Mizuho Financial Group last year and defeated by a margin of around 65-35, the bank said at the time.


Dollar Near Two-Week High as Stock Rout, AI Concerns and Global Events Drive Market Volatility
Thailand Inflation Remains Negative for 10th Straight Month in January
Prudential Financial Reports Higher Q4 Profit on Strong Underwriting and Investment Gains
Trump Signs Executive Order Threatening 25% Tariffs on Countries Trading With Iran
OpenAI Expands Enterprise AI Strategy With Major Hiring Push Ahead of New Business Offering
Amazon Stock Rebounds After Earnings as $200B Capex Plan Sparks AI Spending Debate
SpaceX Prioritizes Moon Mission Before Mars as Starship Development Accelerates
Uber Ordered to Pay $8.5 Million in Bellwether Sexual Assault Lawsuit
Trump Backs Nexstar–Tegna Merger Amid Shifting U.S. Media Landscape
Sony Q3 Profit Jumps on Gaming and Image Sensors, Full-Year Outlook Raised
Weight-Loss Drug Ads Take Over the Super Bowl as Pharma Embraces Direct-to-Consumer Marketing
Gold and Silver Prices Slide as Dollar Strength and Easing Tensions Weigh on Metals
Nvidia, ByteDance, and the U.S.-China AI Chip Standoff Over H200 Exports
Vietnam’s Trade Surplus With US Jumps as Exports Surge and China Imports Hit Record
Tencent Shares Slide After WeChat Restricts YuanBao AI Promotional Links
U.S.-India Trade Framework Signals Major Shift in Tariffs, Energy, and Supply Chains
Asian Stocks Slip as Tech Rout Deepens, Japan Steadies Ahead of Election 



