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Building Better ESG Indexes: 30 Years On 

Global Investing , ESG Research

How ESG indexes have evolved over the past 30 years: A Q&A with Stuart Doole, head of new index development at MSCI, about his conversations with investors since the COVID19 crisis started, the growth of ESG investing and how MSCI Research uses AI and machine learning in developing its ESG indexes.

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Five lessons for investors from the COVID-19 crisis 

ESG Research , Factors , Global Investing

COVID-19 unleashed a torrent of sharp movements across global financial markets. We highlight five key lessons for investors regarding global investing, managing factors, active management, indexed investing and ESG investing.

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MSCI ESG Indexes during the coronavirus crisis 

ESG Research , Emerging Markets , Global Investing

The COVID-19 outbreak is the first real-world test since the 2008 global financial crisis of the resilience of companies with high MSCI ESG Ratings. We analyze the performance of four standard MSCI ESG Indexes over Q1 2020 and longer periods.

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Green bonds: Growing bigger and broader 

ESG Research , Fixed Income , Global Investing

As the green-bond market matures, it is developing offshoots. The types of projects financed, as well as the emergence of innovative types of bonds and loans linked to the ESG targets, is growing. These initiatives may broaden the market for green investment options.

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Corporate-bond performance by factors and ESG 

ESG Research , Factor Indexes , Fixed Income , Risk Management

The volatility seen in equity markets was also present among investment-grade corporate bonds,. We use factors and ESG ratings to dissect these bonds’ performance over Q1 2020.

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For target-date funds, hindsight was 40/60 

ESG Research , Factor Indexes , Fixed Income , Risk Management

Recent market volatility has been especially unkind to those closest to and early in retirement, as the sequence of returns matters for retirement income. Would low-volatility and ESG investments have benefited target date funds during volatile periods?

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Quantifying ESG fund performance 

ESG Research , Factors

One challenge facing investors is how to quantify the impact ESG has had on their investment process. We analyzed top ESG funds to better understand the contribution of the ESG factor to their performance.

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Will coronavirus reduce emissions long term? 

ESG Research , Global Investing

Has COVID-19 affected carbon emissions? Using satellite imagery from NASA and the European Space Agency, we examined the empirical data so far to understand the potential impact, and if there may be a decline in global greenhouse-gas emissions in 2020.

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Integrating ESG in emerging markets and Asia 

ESG Research , Emerging Markets , Global Investing

Previously, we have examined the relationship between ESG characteristics and financial performance in developed markets. In this blog post, we explore whether ESG characteristics  have had financially significant effects in emerging markets and Asia.

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Have corporate green bonds offered lower yields? 

ESG Research , Risk Management , Fixed Income

Green bonds tended to offer lower yields than comparable non-green corporate bonds. What could explain green bonds’ lower yields? And is there any relationship between green-bond issuers’ environmental scores and bond yields?