Sustainability

Action speaks louder than words on ESG issues

28 Nov 2019

Big index funds justify holding stocks with poor environmental, social and governance profiles by pledging to engage with their bosses. New research suggests this isn’t working. While there’s merit in naming and shaming, pension funds voting with their feet is more effective.

The Exchange: Carbon-free superpower

20 Nov 2019

Bushfires and a historic drought have put climate change front and centre for Australia, increasing pressure on a pro-coal government to act. Ross Garnaut, economist and former Canberra adviser, explains why there's an opportunity Down Under that may outweigh the cost of change.

EasyJet finds budget way to offset Greta Thunberg

19 Nov 2019

The low-cost carrier will pay 25 mln pounds a year to compensate for CO2 emissions. That’s less green than it sounds. The benefits of offset schemes are disputed and, at just 25 pence per passenger, won’t change behaviour. It’s more about countering the Swedish teen’s guilt trip.

E-book: Water, climate and finance

18 Nov 2019

Global warming makes itself felt most keenly through floods, drought and changing rain and snowfall patterns. This collection of columns lays out Breakingviews’ take on what that means for companies, investors and economies around the world.

Review: Nobel winners show limits of their method

15 Nov 2019

Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo like small details and big global comparisons. In “Good Economics for Hard Times”, this year’s laureates make mostly unsurprising proposals. Still, they’re right to pay more attention to actual behaviour, and to distrust too-free markets.

New Delhi is new Asian poster child for toxic air

15 Nov 2019

With residents struggling to breathe, India’s capital has supplanted Beijing as the region’s smog hotspot. China’s state-mandated clean-up achieved some results. The South Asian democracy faces knottier problems, though, including skewed farmer incentives and a choking economy.

Cox: A Canadian breakup is back on the table

12 Nov 2019

Pent-up frustrations over economic fairness and other issues are fueling “Wexit” calls in energy-rich Alberta and breadbasket Saskatchewan. But one divide is over an issue that liberal democracies will confront with increasing frequency: how to respond to global warming.

Australia compounds resource industry climate woes

8 Nov 2019

Prime Minister Scott Morrison wants to crack down on environmental protesters. Companies, he argues, should listen to "quiet shareholders" instead. That's bad advice for outfits like BHP and for his government: both deserve to face more pressure on low-carbon options, not less.

Cox: Aramco is an ESG investor’s worst nightmare

7 Nov 2019

The Saudi oil giant’s business model is predicated on humans continuing to spew CO2 into the atmosphere. Its governance makes WeWork look benign. Its monarchy is overly tolerant of human rights abuses and beheadings. Fund managers with a conscience should boycott the deal.

EU can afford to act tough on carbon border taxes

5 Nov 2019

Brussels wants to levy the same tax on CO2 emissions in imports as on products made in the single market. Trading partners will carp about protectionism. But the EU has economic heft, precedents for a tight-door policy, and growing impetus for action. There’s scope to be bold.

Chile’s canceled summits are a climate allegory

30 Oct 2019

The country has pulled out of hosting the U.N.’s annual anti-global-warming confab and the APEC summit following deadly protests over inequality. It exemplifies the dilemmas governments and companies face in trying to tackle long-term problems when there are also immediate needs.

Beyond Meat’s post-lockup slump is just a taster

30 Oct 2019

The vegan-burger maker’s stock fell 22% as a block on insiders’ share sales was lifted. It’s still far above its IPO price, and revenue is rocketing. But it’s a reminder of a simple truth: more supply tends to mean lower prices. Rivals are getting wise to meatless meat’s appeal.

GM lets short-term profit trump no-emissions goal

29 Oct 2019

The U.S. automaker is among several supporting a White House legal push to strip California of its right to regulate tailpipe emissions. If successful, the move will encourage sales of gas-guzzling SUVs and trucks. GM is delaying its non-polluting future as long as possible.

Viewsroom: WeWork’s future may lie in China’s past

24 Oct 2019

Beijing-based Kr Space switched from renting out space held on long-term leases to selling services after the shared-office market crashed. Following suit may help WeWork stem losses. Also: climate change and Canada’s election. Plus: the gloomy IMF and unrest in Latin America.

Canada’s election could bring climate-change chill

18 Oct 2019

Even if Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party loses to Conservatives next week, his national carbon tax looks safe. Yet the rate is too low, and unlikely to get tougher. Having a big, pollution-happy neighbor doesn’t help. Canada’s green wave may be reaching its political limits.

China’s growth starts to slouch prematurely

18 Oct 2019

It fell to 6% in the third quarter, and even that rate may be unsustainable. It’s too soon for this sort of slowdown. Japan was expanding at 9% at a similar development stage. The risk is that Beijing accepts a new normal rather than make tough choices about opening the economy.

China’s eco-friendly debt can be a shade greener

16 Oct 2019

Beijing's rules for its pioneering $40 bln green bond market are still too pliable: a refiner last week issued a note to pay for a petrochemical complex. A central bank review now underway offers a chance to boost credibility by pushing guidelines closer to international norms.

BHP and shareholders share green lobbying dilemma

11 Oct 2019

Aberdeen Standard and others want the world's largest miner to cut ties with business groups opposing Paris climate goals. BHP is reviewing its memberships, but argues change can be promoted within the industry too. It's a quandary familiar to fossil fuel investors.

PG&E faces judicial bankruptcy brownout

10 Oct 2019

Just as the California utility cut off customers to avoid wildfire risks, a judge opened the door for creditors to seize power over its restructuring. They are offering more to fire victims, and less to equity holders. Running the agenda matters: PG&E stock fell another 30%.

Nobel Prize for batteries has a negative side

9 Oct 2019

The Swedes awarded this year’s chemistry gong to the creators of the lithium-ion battery. Its use in everything from smartphones to cars should help the energy business become more climate-friendly. But the technology creates some of its own pollution, resource and social risks.