ABSTRACT

Recently, the level of climate change has substantially been rising; relatively not much is known on ‘how’ companies alter the association between their environmental performance and financial performance within the context of specific elements of innovation: conventional innovation and green innovation. Drawing upon the stakeholder theory and the natural resource-based view of the firm, this research uses firm-level Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) data of 462 companies across 7 Asian countries for the period 2015–2019 and employs time fixed-effects panel regression with country and industry dummies. We find that measures of innovation (i.e. conventional innovation and green innovation) are beneficial to the firm value. However, the positive effect of conventional innovation on the firm valuation builds at the expense of the environment since it poses a significant threat to environmental quality by positively contributing to carbon emission. Whilst firms’ investments in green innovation are advantageous to either type of firm performance. Further analysis shows that firms that focus on environmental practices generate significant outcomes, e.g. improved financial performance, suggesting that firms should prioritize their green investments to enhance the innovation outcomes so as to achieve superior financial value and to attract potential environmentally proactive stakeholders.

摘要

近年来，气候变化的程度大幅上升；相对而言，人们对公司“如何”在特定创新要素（传统创新和绿色创新）的背景下改变其环境绩效和财务绩效之间的关联知之甚少。本研究借鉴利益相关者理论和基于自然资源的公司观点，使用 2015 年至 2019 年期间 7 个亚洲国家 462 家公司的公司级环境、社会和治理 (ESG) 数据，并采用国家和行业虚拟变量的时间固定效应面板回归。我们发现创新措施（即传统创新和绿色创新）有利于企业价值。然而，传统创新对公司估值的积极影响是以牺牲环境为代价的，因为它通过积极促进碳排放而对环境质量构成重大威胁。虽然企业对绿色创新的投资对任一类型的企业绩效都有好处。进一步分析表明，注重环保实践的企业会产生显着的成果，例如改善财务绩效，这表明企业应优先考虑绿色投资，以提高创新成果，从而实现卓越的财务价值并吸引潜在的环保积极利益相关者。虽然企业对绿色创新的投资对任一类型的企业绩效都有好处。进一步分析表明，注重环保实践的企业会产生显着的成果，例如改善财务绩效，这表明企业应优先考虑绿色投资，以提高创新成果，从而实现卓越的财务价值并吸引潜在的环保积极利益相关者。虽然企业对绿色创新的投资对任一类型的企业绩效都有好处。进一步分析表明，注重环保实践的企业会产生显着的成果，例如改善财务绩效，这表明企业应优先考虑绿色投资，以提高创新成果，从而实现卓越的财务价值并吸引潜在的环保积极利益相关者。