The influence of corporate carbon disclosure on investor decisions and attitudes in South Africa

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to investigate and explore the influence that corporate carbon disclosure has on investor decision-­‐making and associated attitudes. The researcher conducted semi-­‐structured interviews with individual investors and institutional investors and fund managers operating in the South African environment in order to gain appropriate insights about their attitudes towards the place of carbon disclosure in the investment analyses. Additionally, semi-­‐structured interviews were held with three prominent petroleum companies operating in the oil and gas industry in South Africa. The results of the research were categorised into four themes that emerged upon analysis of the research findings, namely: the evolution of commercial thinking in terms of carbon emissions and carbon disclosure; the relevance of disclosing carbon emissions and disclosure practices; the association of risk, sustainability and liquidity and investor time horizons; and the emerging market of socially-­‐responsible investors. The researcher found that there is a positive impact on investor attitudes with regard to their investment decision-­‐making as a result of the carbon disclosure of companies.