The Impact of ESG Scores and Their Interaction with Industry Characteristics on Corporate Bond Financing Costs: An Analysis from the Perspective of Credit Spreads

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6239-642-5_46How to use a DOI?

Keywords

ESG score; Credit Spread; Financing Cost

Abstract

In today’s world, sustainable development is gaining increasing prominence, and the emergence of ESG score is driving the evolution of sustainability. From the perspective of credit spreads, the channels through which ESG score influence bond credit spreads represent an area warranting further research. This study offers investors a fresh perspective on acknowledging the importance of non-financial metrics such as ESG score, while also advocating for Chinese policy to differentiate between enterprises based on their sector-specific characteristics. This study examines the impact pathways from a theoretical standpoint, then employs a fixed-effects model to conduct empirical analysis using corporate bond characteristics issued on the Shenzhen and Shanghai stock exchanges between 2017 and 2023. Heterogeneity analysis is further applied to distinguish between heavily polluting and non-heavily polluting enterprises. Findings confirm that ESG score reduce corporate bond financing costs, with significant differences in main effects between heavily polluting and non-polluting enterprises. Recommendations include: heavily polluting enterprises should prioritise improving their ESG metrics, while policymakers should implement differentiated policies for distinct enterprise types to enhance environmental awareness and advance dual carbon objectives.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Xinrong Zhan
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/04/29
TI  - The Impact of ESG Scores and Their Interaction with Industry Characteristics on Corporate Bond Financing Costs: An Analysis from the Perspective of Credit Spreads
BT  - Proceedings of the 2026 11th International Conference on Financial Innovation and Economic Development (ICFIED 2026)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 470
EP  - 485
SN  - 2352-5428
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-642-5_46
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-642-5_46
ID  - Zhan2026
ER  -