Average ESG Ratings of Top 100 Revenue Companies: Japan > US > Korea... Needs Improvement

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] A survey found that among the top 100 companies by sales in Korea, the United States, and Japan, the average Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) ratings were highest in Japan, followed by the United States, and then Korea.

On the 23rd, the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) announced through the report "Comparison of ESG Ratings of Major Companies in Korea, the US, and Japan" that among companies in the three countries with confirmed MSCI ESG ratings (73 US companies, 87 Japanese companies, 50 Korean companies), the average MSCI ESG rating on a 7-point scale was highest for Japan at 4.6, followed by the US at 4.4, and Korea at 3.6.

Regarding the distribution of ratings, in Korea, the most common ratings were BBB (30.0%) and BB (30.0%), while in Japan, companies with A (33.3%) and BBB (23.0%) ratings accounted for the largest shares. In the US, BBB (41.1%) was the most prevalent rating, followed by A (21.9%).

Among the countries, Japan had the highest number of top-rated companies, with six companies receiving the highest rating (AAA): Itochu Corporation, Sony, KDDI, Fujitsu, SOMPO, and Sumitomo Chemical. In the US, two companies?Microsoft and Best Buy?received AAA ratings, whereas no Korean companies received AAA ratings. Three Korean companies?LG Display, KT&G, and SK Inc.?were rated AA.

Analyzing detailed evaluation items by country, Japan excelled in "Corporate Behavior," the US in "Corporate Governance," and Korea in "Clean Technology Development."

The FKI stated, "It is necessary to closely analyze Japan's leading ESG management cases by sector," and added, "From the perspective of Korean companies, it is important to review ESG management elements that can be recognized by global standards through such case studies and to make gradual improvements."

Meanwhile, the K-ESG Alliance, led by the FKI, has announced plans to discover and verify excellent ESG management cases of Korean companies and provide related data to global ESG rating agencies such as MSCI.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.