ESG

As part of the ongoing rise in the popularity of ESG, markets have started paying increased attention to various governance indicators not only for corporates, but also for sovereigns. Many asset managers have already developed their own in-house m...

65% say strategic intelligence has risen in importance over the past 5 years. Intelligence is increasingly being used as a business accelerator and enabler. Ensuring tailored intelligence is fundamental to reducing the ‘noise’ and achieving actionabl...

Plan to improve longer-term business profiles, capital-market access, assuming fair valuation for the legacy businesses. Need to speed up country’s energy transition: more than a half of installed power-generation capacity runs off coal. Utilities ca...

Bond investors should pay particular attention to the ECB’s Corporate Sector Purchasing Programme (CSPP) The ECB has committed to decarbonise CSPP consistent with the goals of the Paris Agreement, which aims to keep the global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius. The strategy so far was to tilt holdings towards issuers with better climate performance.

Ecuadorians voted to ban oil drilling in Yasuni; major victory for environmentalists but will hurt Ecuador's economy. Other EMs are also grappling with the trade-off between energy security and environmental/economic sustainability. Among large EMs,...

Aged US Presidents Biden (80), whom 77% of Americans view as too old for another term, may contest 2024 with Trump (77). Aged US Senators: McConnell (81) has frozen twice in front of the press, Feinstein (90) has had long absences. Old leaders run ke...

MENA region is home to a population of 450 million and has one of the biggest deserted or smallest forest spaces in the world. By 2030, the amount of water available per capita in MENA will fall below the absolute water scarcity threshold of 500 cubic meters per person, per year. In 2023, the region has witnessed an unprecedented growth in issuing green and Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) debt whether through bonds and sukuk.

China property and stimulus woes, Thailand rivals unite, Turkey corrects, Argentina election surprise, BRICS sideshow. No single theme leads in 2023: Strong sovereigns, manufacturing, commodities, tourism, tech, reform all have a place. EM and FM sti...

AfDB's anti-corruption fund not deployed since its 2016 launch. Symptomatic of the whole "Africa corruption problem"? No, not so fast! Progress in several countries. Mexico more corrupt than most of Africa. Developed countries complicit in EM corrupt...

The EU taxonomy is a far-reaching classification system for economic activities and reporting. It indicates the extent to which companies’ activities benefit or harm the environment. Investors struggle with its lack of compatibility with the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), as well as the data gaps and rigidity.

Gabon has recently issued a debut $500 million blue bond, arranged by Bank of America and the Nature Conservancy. Credit enhancements ensured the bond had an Aa2 rating from Moody’s. These debt-for-nature deals are pitched as kill-two-birds-with-one-stone solutions. They aim to conserve nature and lower debts.

Barbie blockbuster movie has proved controversial in some countries because of its allegorical references to LGBT. World Bank termination of funding for Uganda after passage of anti-LGBT laws an example of real economic impact. Equaldex index measure...

State control of internet use and personal data is increasingly common, Pakistan's new laws are the latest examples. Freedom on the Net index: China and Saudi rank lowest, Taiwan and South Africa highest in Large EM, India oddly high. Vietnam lowest...

Climate change causes longer, drier, hotter weather which increases the probability of forest wildfires. So far this year, extreme weather and damaging wildfires in Chile, Canada, Kazakhstan, and now Greece. Two variables relevant for this part of co...

Extreme weather events: Cyclone (Africa), flood (Brazil), heatwave (China, South Asia, Europe), wildfire (Canada). Emissions control likely dominates coverage of COP 28 in November but extreme weather mitigation matters as much. WRI's dataset on wate...

The EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (EUC3D) represents a significant leap forward in third-party risk management. Compliance with this directive requires companies to assess and manage their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risks, disclose sustainability-related information, and ensure supplier adherence to ESG standards.

Refinery ESG initiatives and projects are gaining traction across the globe. Many refineries are already seeking to maximise the value of regulatory incentives aimed at promoting and supporting ESG projects. IIR Energy data reveals a projected total spend of US$16.5 billion across 147ESG projects in North American and European refineries.

Twin threats from AI and Climate Change especially potent due to India’s geography and economic model. AI a threat to global outsourcing, a key component of India's balance of payments. Over 600 million Indians live in extreme climate event hotspots.

A deep dive into the state of ESG disclosure for the Top 40 companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. The Top 40 is a significant contributor to socio-economic development, employment, and value creation in South Africa. It is evident that...

A deep dive into the state of ESG disclosure for Telecoms companies listed on East, West & South African stock exchanges. The Telecoms sector allows for rapid exchange of information, creating global impact through connectivity and Big Data. Due to 4...

A deep dive into the state of ESG disclosure for Banks listed on East, West, and South African stock exchanges. South African banks are leading the way in terms of ESG disclosure in comparison to its Nigerian and Kenyan peers. As ESG disclosure becom...

Most large bourses in the Asia Pacific region rose and Europe's Stoxx 600 is snapping a three-day decline. July WTI is soft and its inability to recover after what appeared to be supportive developments adds to the bearish tone. Despite the slightly firmer US rates, the dollar is trading with a heavier bias against the Japanese yen.

Climate change is causing longer, drier, hotter conditions for forest fires in Canada. Smoke from massive wildfires has blown southwards over the east coast of the US. Highly unusually, both countries are among the poorest in terms of air quality thi...

Sportswashing, rebranding an unpopular regime via the sponsorship of popular sports, is one tool in soft power. PGA Tour head Jay Monahan ridiculed for merging with LIV Golf after berating its Saudi government owner for years. Similar to an athlete o...

The EU’s new Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) will require in-scope corporates to report environmental and sustainability metrics according to EU standards. 31% of the non-EU companies affected are American, followed by 13% Canadian and 11% from the UK. In total, companies from more than 60 countries will have to report.