À̹ÌÁö È®´ë NH Investment & Securities Co. released an environmental, social and governance (ESG) report on 15 companies representing each industry on Friday, becoming the first brokerage house in South Korea to issue a report on corporate non-financial data that has been increasingly attracting attention of investors.
The 357-page-long NH ESG Report in both Korean and English analyzed the ESG metrics on 15 firms – SK, Posco, LG Chem, KEPCO, Samsung Heavy Industries, Korean Air Lines, Hyundai Motor, Samsung Electronics, Samsung SDI, SK Telecom, Kangwon Land, Yuhan, Shinsegae and Kolmar Korea. Investors can check the full report at its website.
Lee Chang-mok, the head of NH Investment¡¯s research center, said the brokerage has decided to analyze and publish its ESG report in hopes of contributing to expanding socially responsible investment. The report with more information on companies is expected to encourage firms to improve their governance at a time when the non-financial factors have become as important as financial data in evaluating companies and managing assets. The company will issue the report annually and gradually expand the scope of its analysis. NH Investment is the only securities company in Korea that has published such a report so far.
Global investors place a high importance on ESG reports that are widely released by not only investment advisers but also law and accounting firms.
Non-financial performance has increasingly come under spotlight in the country recently after family-run conglomerates, called chaebols, came under fire for multiple scandals involving owner family, such as feuds over group ownership, corruption and embezzlement charges as well as other incidents questioning the ethics of owner family members in running their businesses. These scandals and charges have actually rocked the reputation of the companies, causing their stocks to tank.
Amid growing scrutiny over corporate governance issues after a series of scandals, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) recently made it mandatory for Kospi-listed firms with assets of 2 trillion won ($1.7 billion) or more to disclose changes and developments in governance and ownership structure. The nation¡¯s largest institutional investor National Pension Service also adopted the so-called stewardship code, a set of guidelines that encourage investors to be more vocal in corporate governance management.
By Yoo Joon-ho and Choi Mira
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