Singapore, Australia have most transparent companies: S&P
Singapore, Australia have most transparent companies: S&P
Agence France-Presse, Singapore
Singapore and Australia have the most transparent companies in
the Asia-Pacific, while Taiwan firms are the least open, global
ratings agency Standard and Poor's said Thursday.
S and P said findings in its latest survey showed a need for
companies to improve the disclosure of timely and adequate
information on a firm's operating and financial performance.
Non-disclosure of vital information by corporations had been
cited as a key factor to the Asian financial crisis that crippled
East Asia in 1997 and 1998.
During the Asian crisis, previously undisclosed high debt
exposures and bad investments were unmasked, sending companies
crying for financial bailouts.
In its survey on transparency and disclosure, "the highest
scoring companies are from Australia and Singapore, all showing
average to above average levels of disclosure," the U.S.-based
credit evaluator said in a statement.
Taiwanese companies were the "least transparent" in the
region, with 21 of the lowest scores, it said.
Grouping companies on a scale of one to 10 with 10 being the
best score, the Australian firms AMCOR Ltd., AMP Ltd., Westpac
Banking and Woolworths Ltd. as well as DBS Group Holdings Ltd.
and CapitalLand Ltd. of Singapore got the highest ranking of
eight.
Thirteen Australian firms and six Singapore corporations
dominated the next tier in the rankings, broken only by the
inclusion of Korea Telecom and Malayan Banking Bhd. of Malaysia.
Among the Singapore firms in the list were Singapore Airlines
and Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. and United Overseas Bank
Ltd. The Australian firms included ANZ Banking Group Ltd.,
Brambles Industries Ltd. and BHP Billiton Ltd.
Samsung Corp. of South Korea was the lone firm at the bottom
of the scale.
"The regional findings underscore the need to improve
corporate transparency, which was a critical factor leading up to
the financial crisis in East Asia in the late 1990s," S and P
said.
"As a subsequent result, investors today continue to demand
more transparency in corporate reporting, among other key
elements needed to better assess risk across markets."
The survey rated companies on the basis of their disclosure of
98 information items in their annual reports.
These items relate to the companies' ownership structure and
investor relations, financial transparency as well as board
management structure and process.