Environmental Reporting and Firm Performance: Evidence from Thailand

The Porter hypothesis posits that a properly designed environmental standard can enhance productivity and competitiveness. Using a unique data set from the Thailand Institute of Directors' Corporate Governance Benchmarking Survey, this study provides indirect support to the Porter hypothesis. Specifically, the empirical results reveal that there is no significant relation between environmental reporting and accounting performance, suggesting that disclosure of good environmental policies does not negatively affect short-term profitability. However, there is a significant positive, non-linear relation between environmental reporting and market valuation. This result implies that reporting of good environmental policies affects long-term performance but that the marginal positive effect on firm value declines at high levels, indicating an optimal level of environmental reporting. The results highlight the complexity of the relation between socially responsible actions and firm performance. The finding also indirectly supports the Porter hypothesis that an optimally designed regulatory standard can increase competitiveness and maximise shareholder wealth.