Performance of ESG Funds Under the Shadow of Climate Policy Uncertainty

Abstract

This study empirically investigates the effects of the climate policy uncertainty (CPU) on the BSE 100 ESG during the study period December 2017 to August 2023 in the backdrop of the application of ESG reporting that was introduced in India in December 2009 with the voluntary guidelines issued by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), Government of India. To address the objectives of the study, different econometric tools namely the FIGARCH model, Wavelet Coherence Analysis, Johansen Co-integration test, Wald test, and Philips-Perron unit root test, along with descriptive statistics are used. The study reveals a noteworthy volatility effect and the variability in the volatility on the BSE 100 ESG from the CPU index. Johansen's co-integration test confirms the presence of a long-run association between the select variables. However, the Wald test suggests the absence of short-run association. Furthermore, the FIGARCH model confirms the lack of a long-memory effect but there exists a substantial impact of CPU on the BSE 100 ESG established by the results of the Wavelet Coherence test.