Climate Change: China’s firms lag behind Asia, North America, Europe in net-zero targets with only 4 per cent adherence, study finds

Chinese listed companies are lagging behind their regional and global counterparts in setting net-zero emission targets, showing a lack of urgency almost two years after the country pledged to achieve carbon neutrality status by 2060.

Only 11 out of 265 companies have set net zero targets and deadlines, according to a study of more than 4,000 entities tracked by researchers at NewClimate Institute, Oxford Net Zero, Energy & Climate Intelligence Unit and Data-Driven EnviroLab. The 4 per cent adherence rate compares with 20 per cent among firms in East Asia, 36 per cent in North America and 58 per cent in Europe.

“Overall, the transparency and integrity of existing net zero pledges are far from sufficient to ensure a timely transition to global net zero greenhouse gas emissions by mid-century,” they said in a report published on Monday. “The focus needs to be on better targets and identifying the ones that are not credible.”

Net zero target disclosure requirements are either mandatory or being phased in Europe, UK, and Japan. They have also been proposed in the US and China, the report noted. These targets have gained significance as global fund managers under Climate Action 100+ grouping have begun to vote with their US$68 trillion of assets to persuade companies to embrace the climate change agenda.

The latest study by the four think tanks covered more than 4,000 entities, cities, regions and governments worldwide. They included 2,000 of the biggest listed companies ranked by Forbes on sales, profits, assets and market value. Some 1,180 or 30 per cent of them have established a net zero target, the study showed.