China 2026 ESG report: 430 mandatory disclosers hit 100% compliance

The 2026 China Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Development Observation Report has been officially released, according to the China Enterprise Reform and Development Society. The report shows that the first batch of mandatory disclosure entities all completed their required disclosures on time, while the number and quality of ESG disclosures by A-share listed companies continued to improve.

As of April 30, 2026, all 430 entities in the first batch required to disclose had published their 2025 ESG reports on schedule, achieving a 100% compliance rate.

More than 2,700 A-share listed companies released ESG reports for 2024, with a disclosure rate of 49.81%, nearly double the level five years ago. Over 80% of companies disclosed their sustainability governance architecture, while disclosure rates for topics such as pollutant emissions and the circular economy both exceeded 90%. Greenhouse gas emissions disclosure rose for a third consecutive year to 76.93%.

China's national carbon market also completed its first expansion, bringing the steel, cement and aluminum smelting sectors into the market. The expansion covers about 60% of the country's carbon dioxide emissions, and that figure is expected to approach 80% by the end of the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030).