As vaccine campaigns roll out and infections and deaths hit new highs around the world, the percentage of COVID-related ESG content hasn’t broken out of the range of ~25% of total volume.
The COVID-19 Response Signal reached a new high of 15.6% this week, a level not seen at any point in the past 12 months, as vaccine campaigns are in full swing for healthcare workers, seniors, and other priority groups.
The SASB category of Access & Affordability, fueled by vaccine deployment news, has claimed about a quarter of all COVID-19 news for the past month, hitting 29% this week. Discussion of how to allocate limited vaccine resources undoubtedly is a driver for this category, given its concern with access of resources to communities.
Social data leads the dimensions with 40% of data, while Environment data remains at 36% of ESG data, maintaining a recent level as climate-related policy and severe weather events capture attention.
Europe's percentage of ESG conversation related to COVID-19 reached the highest point since late May, as new cases began rising after the Christmas holiday. As the U.S. has set a new record with 1.5 million new cases in a week, volume of COVID-19 coverage remains fairly flat, at about a third of all data.
Unsurprisingly, Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals shows a massive ratio of COVID-related content to non-COVID content, reaching a level of 500%+. Next on the list is Health Care Distributors.
The COVID-19 Response Signal is the highest for a diverse international group of vaccine makers.
Continuing with a focus on racial equality, we again highlight key recent Spotlight Events. This week, racial justice-related data shows banks stepping up on diversity and racial justice, with HSBC vowing to double its senior Black staff, and TCF Bank promising $1 billion in loans to minority and women-owned small businesses.
