A new financial index detailing the ESG credentials of 20 UAE-based companies has been unveiled by Dubai Financial Market (DFM).
According to the exchange, the new benchmark is designed to encourage local listed companies to embrace best practices for ESG.
The S&P/Hawkamah UAE ESG Index has been developed in partnership with S&P Dow Jones Indices and the UAE-based Hawkamah Institute for Corporate Governance and has been approved by the UAE Securities and Commodities Authority.
The inaugural index sample will comprise the top 20 stocks on the exchange and include five years of historical ESG data, dating back to 2015. The companies will be assessed by taking their public statements and disclosures on ESG indicators and the index will be reconstituted once a year in November based on data compiled by Hawkamah.
“The appropriate implementation of best practices of corporate governance, disclosure and transparency as well as environmental and social commitment is essential to boost UAE markets’ competitiveness, attract further investments and sustain growth noting that investment institutions across the world are increasingly factoring these matters in investment decisions process,” said Essa Kazim, chairman of the DFM.
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