The Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited ("the Exchange") has just announced that the proposal to upgrade the General Disclosures under the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Guide to 'comply or explain' and other amendments will be effective in phases, with the first phase starting for issuers' financial years commencing on, or after, 1 January 2016.

The amendments to the Corporate Governance Code introduced in December 2014, incorporating risk management and effective internal controls, will also take effect for issuers' financial years commencing on, or after, 1 January 2016.

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Originally published on 30 December 2015

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