【ESG News】Global Trends Biweekly Newsletter Issue 40 (2025.8.11-2025.8.24)

On August 20, Minister of Ecology and Environment Huang Runqiu met with Secretary for Environment and Ecology of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government Tse Chun-wan in Beijing. The two sides exchanged views on issues such as ecological environment protection in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the construction of a green “Belt and Road.” 

Huang Runqiu introduced the great achievements in ecological environment protection in the new era under the guidance of the concept that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets. He fully affirmed the work of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in strengthening ecological environment governance and promoting green and low-carbon transformation. He said that the Ministry of Ecology and Environment has long maintained good communication and coordination with the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government in the field of ecological environment. He hopes that the two sides will continue to carry out exchanges and cooperation in multiple fields and at multiple levels, and jointly promote the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the pilot areas for a beautiful China. 

Source: https://www.mee.gov.cn/ywdt/hjywnews/202508/t20250821_1125887.shtml 

Lianhe Green Insights 

This meeting is a key connection between central ministries and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government against the backdrop of “dual carbon” goals. Guided by the concept that “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets,” the Ministry of Ecology and Environment has affirmed the effectiveness of Hong Kong's green transition, sending a signal of continuous national support for Hong Kong's participation in the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and “Beautiful China.” 

Hong Kong has clearly identified green technology and green finance as key areas to deepen cooperation, which not only serves the national “dual carbon” strategy but also seeks new momentum for its own development through the “Belt and Road” Initiative. The reaffirmation of the “multi-field, multi-level” cooperation framework between the two sides is expected to transform Hong Kong’s institutional and international experience advantages into a demonstration effect for regional green governance.

Opening of the United Nations’ New Round of Negotiations on Governing Plastic Pollution 

From August 5 to 14, the next round of negotiations on the Global Plastics Treaty—the second part of the fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5.2)—took place at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. The negotiations aimed to reach a legally binding international agreement to address the increasingly severe crisis of plastic pollution. The ten-day meeting reviewed a draft agreement covering the full life cycle management of plastics, with the goal of promoting systemic changes from design and production to disposal, fostering a circular economy, and reducing the flow of plastics into the environment. Regrettably, the fifth United Nations conference (INC-5.2) failed to reach a consensus on stricter and enforceable rules for reducing plastic pollution.  

Source: https://www.weforum.org/stories/2025/08/global-plastics-treaty-inc-5-2-explainer/ 

Lianhe Green Insights 

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) estimates that global plastic waste will exceed 1 billion tons by 2025 and increase to 1.7 billion tons by 2060. Establishing a circular economy through recycling is crucial for reducing plastic pollution. Although no agreement was reached at this meeting, the work to reduce plastic pollution will not stop.

Pilot Program for Green Foreign Debt Business Launched by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange 

In order to thoroughly implement the decisions and plans of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, and actively support the development of green finance, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) has decided to launch a pilot program for green foreign debt business in 16 provinces and cities, including Shanghai, Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian, Shandong, Hubei, Guangdong, Sichuan, Ningbo, Xiamen, Qingdao, and Shenzhen. This initiative encourages non-financial enterprises to use cross-border financing funds for green or low-carbon transformation projects. 

The pilot policy mainly targets domestic non-financial enterprises that raise domestic and foreign currency funds from non-residents and use them exclusively to support green or low-carbon transformation projects that meet the relevant regulations of the People's Bank of China and other departments. It allows such projects to occupy less of the enterprise's total cross-border financing risk-weighted balance, thereby increasing the upper limit of cross-border financing scale for enterprises investing in green development or low-carbon transformation projects. Meanwhile, the relevant foreign debt registration can be directly handled by banks, which enhances the convenience of handling green foreign debt business and is conducive to attracting global financial resources to orderly gather in China's green and low-carbon development and other fields. 

Source: https://www.gov.cn/lianbo/bumen/202508/content_7037405.htm 

Lianhe Green Insights 

The pilot policy is designed to encourage non-financial enterprises to use cross-border financing funds for green or low-carbon transformation projects, providing relevant enterprises with more flexible financial support, reducing financing costs, and enhancing their ability to participate in green projects. The highlights of the policy include expanding the scale of financing, simplifying the foreign debt registration process, and attracting global financial resources to orderly gather in China’s green and low-carbon development fields. This will promote the implementation of green projects, drive high-quality economic development, and enhance China's competitiveness and influence in the global green finance arena. Overall, this policy innovation will inject new impetus into China’s green finance development, and help achieve high-quality economic development and sustainable development goals. 

SSE Releases Report on 20 Years of ESG Practices in the Shanghai Market 

On August 15, on the 20th anniversary of the proposition of the concept that “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets,” the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) released the Chinese and English versions of the report “Implementing the ‘Two Mountains’ Concept: 20 Years of ESG Practices in the Shanghai Market” (“ESG Practices”). This report provides a comprehensive review of the development of ESG practices in the Shanghai market over the past two decades. By compiling a chronology of significant ESG events in the Shanghai market, including representative cases and summarizing achievements in market construction, the report aims to demonstrate the profound impact of the “Two Mountains” concept on the capital market from the perspective of ESG practices in the Shanghai market. The report “ESG Practices” uses data to show the comparison between the past and present of ESG practices in the Shanghai market over the past 20 years. As of now, more than 1,300 companies in the Shanghai market have separately disclosed ESG-related reports for the year 2024, with a disclosure rate of 57%, setting a new historical record. The total issuance of green bonds in the Shanghai market has reached 862.7 billion yuan, making it one of the world's major green bond markets. There are a total of 90 sustainable development index-tracking products with a combined scale of 73.192 billion yuan. There are also a total of 157 broad-based index products based on the “A Series” indices such as the CSI A500 and the SSE 180 Index, which use the CSI ESG evaluation, with a combined scale of 252.848 billion yuan. 

Source: http://www.sse.com.cn/aboutus/mediacenter/hotandd/c/c_20250815_10788642.shtml?sessionid= 

Lianhe Green Insights 

The release of the “ESG Practices” report by the SSE is of great significance. It not only provides a comprehensive review of the 20-year development of ESG in the Shanghai market but also highlights the significant achievements in ESG practices through a series of data. In the future, the SSE will further guide all market participants to continue to actively participate in and practice the concept of sustainable development through measures such as optimizing ESG disclosure standards, promoting the improvement of ESG rating levels, and enriching green financial products. Market participants should continue to pay close attention to regulatory developments in sustainable development, further deepen the ESG concept, proactively disclose and improve ESG management practices and effectiveness, and win market trust through transparency.