New index to give boost to green development

The International Institute of Green Finance at the Central University of Finance and Economics, China Securities Index Co Ltd, and the Luxembourg Stock Exchange jointly launch the CSI 300 Green Leading Stock Index in Beijing, Sept 26, 2017. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The CSI 300 Green Leading Stock Index, sampled from listed companies covered by the blue-chip CSI 300 Index, measures a company's green development strategies, green supply chains, pollution discharge, energy and resources consumption, green income, as well as its negative environment behaviors.

"With its high liquidity, transparency and test results that outperform the CSI 300 Index, the index is expected to become a benchmark for green stocks in China," said Shi Yichen, assistant director general and head of Green Finance Innovation Laboratory of the International Institute of Green Finance at the Central University of Finance and Economics, at the launch of the index in Beijing on Tuesday.

China has stepped up the development of green finance system to promote green, low carbon development of its economy, according to Ma Xianfeng, deputy director general of China Securities Finance Institute and deputy chair of Green Finance Committee of China Society for Finance and Banking.

The country encourages financial institutions to conduct research and development in green stock and bond indices and related products and welcomes fund management institutions to develop fund products based on the green indices to meet investors' demand, he said.

"The launch of the green finance instruments such as the green stock index is an important way to support China's green economic development", said Song Hongyu, director of the Research and Development Department of China Securities Index Co Ltd.

It is the first time the company has cooperated with an academic institution from a university to develop an index, he said, adding the company hopes to provide green investment tools for investors through multi-dimensional and richer green index system, and to contribute to green finance development.

China has been quite internationalized in terms of green finance development, said Robert Scharfe, CEO of Luxembourg Stock Exchange.

China's capital market has been opened wider and wider, he added, citing the country's efforts to attract foreign capital through its bond and stock connect programs.

The green stock index is important for the capital market and one of the objectives of co-launching the stock index with Chinese partners is to provide transparent information for overseas investors, he said.

"The International Institute of Green Finance has been actively promoting the international communication and cooperation in green finance," said Wang Yao, general director of the institute and deputy secretary general of Green Finance Committee of China Society for Finance and Banking.

Together with the Luxemburg Stock Exchange and China Securities Index Co Ltd, the institute launched a green bond index in Europe in March this year.

The institute plans to work with China Securities Index Co Ltd and related fund management companies to develop exchange traded fund based on the CSI 300 Green Leading Stock Index and promote the index in cooperation with the Luxemburg Stock Exchange.