China Unveils ESG Reporting Guidelines to Catch Peers
- Voluntary reporting program with Chinese traits starts June 1
- New platform offers hint of more stringent reporting to come
Photovoltaic panels at a solar farm in Gonghe County, Qinghai province, China.
Photographer: Qilai Shen/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
A new set of voluntary guidelines for Chinese companies to report environmental, social and governance metrics take effect Wednesday, offering a glimpse of what mandatory disclosures might eventually look like in the country.
Developed by China’s biggest companies and government-backed think tanks, the standards list more than 100 metrics that generally align with the global benchmark of draft rules issued by the International Sustainability Standards Board. The differences are they’re more simplistic and add “Chinese characteristics” that measure things like corporate charity.