Minister for Sustainability and the Environment, Ms Grace Fu; Ambassador for Climate Action, Mr Ravi Menon; honoured guests, ladies and gentlemen.
Good morning, and welcome to today’s market open ceremony kicking off our Climate Action Forum.
This year is pivotal as we advance SGX’s Value Unlock agenda to strengthen liquidity, sharpen research and attract global capital.
In this environment, issuers that communicate clearly will stand out, attract new investors and crowd in patient capital.
Growth and earnings remain fundamental; but investors are pricing risk and resilience just as closely.
Heightened geopolitical tensions and disruptions to global energy supply have brought risk firmly into focus.
The question on the minds of many investors is: how resilient is my stock portfolio? And what risks are not yet priced in?
Recent geopolitical developments have clearly moved the needle for climate conversations and disclosures.
In time, other climate shocks will emerge to test companies in the same way that this energy crisis has tested them: rising sea levels and flash floods, higher temperatures and heat waves, these are no longer distant risks – they are already here and likely to intensify.
Increasingly, investors will demand that boards and management disclose such risks and the preparations to mitigate them.
This is why today’s forum places emphasis on action.
And in that spirit, I would like to make a practical suggestion for our issuers: start small, but start early.
Do not get me wrong. Climate change is a big problem, and solving it requires thinking big and taking bold steps to address it.
But small steps can make a difference too.
In the context of SGX’s Value Unlock movement, we encourage issuers to think about how climate-related disclosures can serve as a value creation tool.
Many of our larger issuers have already progressed significantly on this front. To this group, continue to lead as there is still more to be done.
For issuers earlier in their journeys, readiness can be a concern. To this group, support is available. Tools such as ESGenome, integrated with national climate infrastructure such as Gprnt, are lowering the barriers to quality climate reporting.
Rather than wait until the next crisis takes you by surprise, issuers should take advantage of the current momentum in the Singapore stock market.
Use this time to engage investors and develop a deeper understanding of how disclosures – including on climate – can enhance value.
Together we can build a stock market that is more vibrant, more resilient and, ultimately, more valuable.
Thank you.
