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Abstract
KPMG International recently released a study showing that the number of US companies reporting sustainability data has doubled since 2005. Equally revealing is that ethics has overtaken economics as the primary reason for disclosure of environmental, social, and governance issues, according to a KPMG global analysis of corporate reports. The survey found that, among the top 100 US companies, 74% published corporate responsibility (CR) information in 2008, either as part of their annual financial report, or as a separate document. KPMG found that 70% of all companies studied noted that ethical considerations were a primary driver for making CR disclosures, while 50% cited economic concerns as the chief reason. The KPMG study also found that almost all of the G250 companies surveyed used the Global Reporting Initiative's Sustainability Reporting Guidelines to compile their CR disclosures.