Dr. Matthew Kiernan, CEO of Innovest, an international investment advisory firm, whose analysis underpins the list, notes: “As global investors become increasingly concerned about economic prospects for 2008, we believe that the Global 100 will be particularly well positioned to weather the storm and deliver superior value to investors.” This optimism would seem to be borne out by the live three year performance of the Global 100 which, as a group, outperforms the MSCI World Index benchmark by over 700 basis points per year and the Dow Jones Titans Index by 900 basis points per year.
This year, the UK accounted for the most constituents, at 24, plus two that are jointly headquartered in the UK. The US followed with 16 and Japan accounted for 13. For the first time a Chinese company – MTR Corporation, which runs Hong Kong’s mass transit system – was included in the Global 100.
Thirty-two of last year’s list fell out of the index this year, including Google, HSBC, and Scottish and Southern Energy. Meanwhile, new additions included private equity firm 3i, Spanish construction and energy company Acciona and mining company Rio Tinto.
“Like the companies ranked on this list, Innovest is proud to be at the forefront of this growing wave of sustainability,” says Matthew Kiernan. “Sustainability may be a moral issue for some, but we believe that real and sustained action will only be taken by those who understand how crucial this is to investment risk and returns,” he adds.
Toby Heaps, co-Founder and Editor of Corporate Knights magazine, says that, “Increased environmental scrutiny and regulatory action are opening the floodgates for trillions of dollars of investment capital to flow into companies with a green edge, and the G100 are well-placed to surf this long-wave.”
The G100, a select group of companies taken from a pool of some 1,800 international companies, provides investors – and other stakeholders – with a unique evaluation tool.
The Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World is a project initiated by Corporate Knights Inc. (www.corporateknights.ca), with Innovest Strategic Value Advisors Inc. (www.innovestgroup.com). Launched in 2005, the annual Global 100 is announced each year at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
The list: