HKEX Postpones Proposed Implementation Date for Climate Change Disclosures

The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (HKEX) announced¹ on 3 November 2023 that the proposed implementation date for the climate-related disclosures proposed in its April 2023 Consultation Paper² will be postponed from 1 January 2024 to 1 January 2025.

The Consultation Paper proposed the mandatory inclusion of climate-related disclosures in the annual Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reports of all listed issuers and the introduction of additional climate-related disclosures. The proposed date for implementing the necessary amendments to the HKEX Listing Rules was 1 January 2024. For a summary of the HKEX’s April 2023 Consultation Paper’s proposals, please see Charltons’ April 2023 newsletter.

The Consultation Paper’s proposals were informed by the exposure draft of IFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures (ISSB Climate Standard) published by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), and the subsequent discussions that took place. The HKEX said in the Consultation Paper that it would consider the final ISSB Climate Standard when finalising the amendments to the HKEX Listing Rules.

In June 2023, the ISSB published the final IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards comprising the IFRS S1 General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information and the ISSB Climate Standard. Additionally, the ISSB announced its intention to publish an adoption guide (ISSB Adoption Guide) to assist regulatory bodies by providing guidance on implementation considerations, and advising on scalability and phasing-in measures for the application of the ISSB standards.³ The ISSB Adoption Guide is expected to be available before the end of 2023.

The HKEX intends to take into account the recommended approaches for scaling and phasing-in of requirements, as provided in the ISSB Adoption Guide, when finalising the amendments to the HKEX Listing Rules. Consequently, the implementation date for the proposed HKEX Listing Rule amendments will be postponed to 1 January 2025, allowing issuers more time to familiarise themselves with the new climate-related disclosure requirements.