DIC is Selected for the First Time for Inclusion in the FTSE4Good Index and the FTSE Blossom Japan Index, Two Leading ESG Investment Indices

Tokyo, Japan–DIC Corporation announced today that it has been selected for the first time for inclusion in the FTSE4Good Index, a globally recognized environment, society and governance (ESG) investment index, and the FTSE Blossom Japan Index, an ESG investment index comprising Japanese companies in the FTSE4Good Index.

The FTSE4Good Index was developed in 2001 by United Kingdom-based FTSE International Limited (trading name: FTSE Russell), a wholly owned subsidiary of the London Stock Exchange Group plc, for the selection of companies demonstrating outstanding ESG practices. To ensure data reliability and market transparency, FTSE Russell assesses information disclosed by companies regarding their ESG management and initiatives using ESG Ratings*, a proprietary ratings model.

In recent years, the idea that ESG performance can influence share price has gained acceptance worldwide, prompting institutional investors and other financial market participants to pay increasingly close attention to companies’ ESG initiatives. In Europe and the Americas, pension funds and other institutional investors have incorporated companies’ ESG initiatives into their investment guidelines. Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF), which promotes ESG investment with the purpose of improving long-term returns on assets under management, uses four ESG investment indices targeting Japanese equities: the FTSE Blossom Japan Index, the MSCI Japan ESG Select Leaders Index, the MSCI Japan Empowering Women (WIN) Index and the S&P/JPX Carbon Efficient Index.

The DIC Group believes that its formulation of a human rights policy and an official approach to tax, as well as its efforts to enhance its disclosure of information regarding its purchasing and Responsible Care efforts, were significant factors in its inclusion in the FTSE4Good Index and the FTSE Blossom Japan Index. DIC has now been selected by three major global ESG investment index series: the MSCI ESG Indexes, the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI Asia Pacific Index) and the FTSE4Good Index Series. DIC is also a constituent of the four ESG investment indices used by the GPIF.

Underscoring the priority it places on ESG initiatives, in January 2018 DIC established the ESG Unit. Recognizing ESG as essential to the realization of a sustainable society, we work with its approximately 170 Group companies around the world to conduct its operations in a manner that incorporates related concerns. Looking ahead, the DIC Group will continue to strengthen its ESG initiatives with the goal of delivering the value that its stakeholders—including its customers, business partners, local communities, shareholders and investors, and employees—expect.

-Ends-

* The FTSE Russell ESG Ratings model consists of 14 themes, including Climate Change, Water Security, Biodiversity, Pollution and Resources, Health and Safety, Labor Standards, Human Rights and Community, Customer Responsibility, Anti-corruption, Tax Transparency, Risk Management and Corporate Governance. These themes encompass 300-plus individual indicators.