Bangkok--13 Sep--SET
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) announces that 14 Thai listed companies have been included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI), one of the most highly regarded global sustainability indices, reflecting Thai listed firms' potential and quality towards global standards and underlining SET's strategic plan to promote capital market and the country sustainability.
This list consists of one newcomer, Kasikornbank pcl (KBANK), on top of the 13 existing Thai firms. Significantly, TOP was ranked the highest score, for the second consecutive year, among the 159 global leading firms in Energy Industry Group.
Five among 14 selected firms, namely KBANK, PTT, PTTEP, PTTGC and SCC, have been selected in the 2016 Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DSJI World), while ADVANC, AOT, BANPU, CPF, CPN, IRPC, KBANK, MINT, PTT, PTTEP, PTTGC, SCC, TOP and TU have been chosen to be in the Dow Jones Sustainability Emerging Markets Index (DJSI Emerging Markets).
SET President Kesara Manchusree stated, "This year SET's listed firms make the highest number of inclusion among ASEAN for both DJSI Emerging Markets and DSJI World. This success has proven listed companies' efforts in operating businesses with the best sustainability practices by considering environmental, social and governance or ESG, as such underlining SET's commitment to enhance both performance and quality of listed companies towards sustainability."
Meanwhile, ESG integration has become a key factor in attracting global funds, as it could provide transparency, stakeholder responsibility, better risk management and innovation to affirm the firm's long-term return generatingand business sustainability, added Kesara.
This year, out of 33 invited companies, 24 companies participated in the sustainability assessment accounting for 73 percent of total companies invited. This was partly due to SET's major role to encourage Thai listed firms to participate in the assessment as well as building their readiness to be a DJSI component. SET has invited experts from Swiss-based RobecoSAM to conduct workshops for DJSI readiness, and to equip CEO and operational staff with knowledge for the assessment.
The DJSI global indices, track the financial performance of leading sustainability-driven companies worldwide, used by leading funds as a gauge for making prudent long-run investment decisions. S&P Dow Jones Indices and RobecoSAM jointly announces results of its annual review every September. DJSI members consisting of 60 industries or 24 industry groups, currently could attract a combined investment fund over USD 5 billion.
This year, DJSI invited 3,420 global companies with large market capitalization to participate in DJSI corporate sustainability assessment and select the list of companies that have passed the selection criteria into DJSI members. The 2016 DJSI review will be effective on September 19, 2016.
Note: Thai Beverage pcl, a Thai non-SET listed firm, has also been included in the 2016 DJSI Emerging Markets Index.