Poor environmental ratings and higher carbon footprints are associated with lower corporate bond credit ratings and higher yield spreads, particularly for firms located in states with stricter environmental regulations, according to Lee Seltzer of the New York Federal Reserve Bank, Laura Starks of the University of Texas at Austin, and Qifei Zhu of Nanyang Technological University.
This research – the latest rebuttal to climate change dis-avowers – came AutoInformed’s way from the Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy* at the Brookings Institute. So-called Environmental, social, and governance ethics, aka ESG, are becoming an increasing factor in a company’s ratings because they reflect its ability to survive in AutoInformed’s view – if the earth survives.**
“Using the 2015 Paris Agreement as a shock to investors’ expectations of future environmental regulations, the authors find that firms with poor environmental profiles (constructed using ESG ratings and carbon emissions data) saw their credit ratings fall and yield spreads rise relative to greener companies after the agreement, especially in environmentally stringent states—suggesting that both credit rating analysts and bond investors reacted to potential tightening of environmental regulations in the future,” Hutchins summarized.
The composition of bondholders also changed post Paris 2015. Insurance companies, which tend to have longer investment horizons, decreased their holdings of the less green companies while shorter-term mutual funds did not. These findings reinforce the idea that regulatory risk is “a major channel through which climate and other types of environmental risks get embedded in security prices,” the authors say.
*The mission of the Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy is to improve the quality and efficacy of fiscal and monetary policies and public understanding of them. It provides independent, non-partisan analysis and draws on the expertise of Brookings Institution scholars and of experts in government, academia, think tanks and business, as well as the guidance of its Advisory Council. By commissioning research, convening private and public events and harnessing the power of the Internet, it seeks to generate new thinking, promote constructive criticism and provide a forum for reasoned debate. The Center was founded with a gift from the Hutchins Family Foundation.
**AutoInformed on
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
Lower Credit Ratings for Firms with Poor ESG Ratings
Poor environmental ratings and higher carbon footprints are associated with lower corporate bond credit ratings and higher yield spreads, particularly for firms located in states with stricter environmental regulations, according to Lee Seltzer of the New York Federal Reserve Bank, Laura Starks of the University of Texas at Austin, and Qifei Zhu of Nanyang Technological University.
This research – the latest rebuttal to climate change dis-avowers – came AutoInformed’s way from the Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy* at the Brookings Institute. So-called Environmental, social, and governance ethics, aka ESG, are becoming an increasing factor in a company’s ratings because they reflect its ability to survive in AutoInformed’s view – if the earth survives.**
“Using the 2015 Paris Agreement as a shock to investors’ expectations of future environmental regulations, the authors find that firms with poor environmental profiles (constructed using ESG ratings and carbon emissions data) saw their credit ratings fall and yield spreads rise relative to greener companies after the agreement, especially in environmentally stringent states—suggesting that both credit rating analysts and bond investors reacted to potential tightening of environmental regulations in the future,” Hutchins summarized.
The composition of bondholders also changed post Paris 2015. Insurance companies, which tend to have longer investment horizons, decreased their holdings of the less green companies while shorter-term mutual funds did not. These findings reinforce the idea that regulatory risk is “a major channel through which climate and other types of environmental risks get embedded in security prices,” the authors say.
*The mission of the Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy is to improve the quality and efficacy of fiscal and monetary policies and public understanding of them. It provides independent, non-partisan analysis and draws on the expertise of Brookings Institution scholars and of experts in government, academia, think tanks and business, as well as the guidance of its Advisory Council. By commissioning research, convening private and public events and harnessing the power of the Internet, it seeks to generate new thinking, promote constructive criticism and provide a forum for reasoned debate. The Center was founded with a gift from the Hutchins Family Foundation.
**AutoInformed on
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.