KT&G Named to Dow Jones Sustainability World Index for Second Straight Year

KT&G said it was included for a second consecutive year in the top-tier “World Index” of the Dow Jones Best-in-Class Indices (DJBIC), a global ESG (environmental, social and governance) assessment that recognizes leading sustainability performance.

The company said Monday it was also included in the Dow Jones “Asia Pacific” and “Korea” indices. DJBIC is an annual sustainability evaluation published by S&P Global, and is used by global investors as a benchmark for responsible investment.

The World Index includes only the top 10% of companies for ESG performance among roughly 2,500 firms with the largest global market capitalization, KT&G said. It said it was ranked No. 1 within its industry group after receiving high marks across governance, environmental and social categories.

KT&G said it earned the highest score in governance-related items including board independence, diversity policies and having an ESG governance structure. In the environmental category, it cited recognition for climate-change response and water-resource management based on its “2030 Green Impact” environmental management vision. In the social category, it said it scored highly for efforts such as implementing human-rights management.

“This World Index inclusion is the result of the global capital market objectively recognizing our continued efforts to advance ESG management,” said Shim Young-a, head of ESG management at KT&G. “We will continue to strengthen execution of ESG management in step with enhancing our core business competitiveness and establish ourselves as a trusted company.”

KT&G said it is also strengthening its compliance and ethics management system. In January, it elevated its compliance management center to a compliance management office to enhance companywide compliance and ethics oversight. It also designates June 2 each year as “KT&G Corporate Ethics Day” and shares ethics messages with employees.