<![CDATA[Research Originality: This study offers novel empirical evidence on the relationship between environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance and financial performance in an underexplored sector of environmentally sensitive industries across Asia-Pacific emerging markets. Research Objectives: This study aims to examine the direct impact of ESG performance on firm profitability and to investigate whether board characteristics moderate this relationship among environmentally sensitive industry firms in 10 Asia-Pacific emerging market countries. Research Method: An unbalanced panel dataset of 762 firms in environmentally sensitive industries (energy, materials, and utilities) from ten Asia-Pacific emerging market countries over the period 2014–2024 was analyzed using fixed-effects panel regression. Empirical Results: ESG performance had no statistically significant effect on either ROA or ROE. The moderation effects of board size, board independence, and board gender on the ESG–profitability nexus are also statistically insignificant. Implications: These findings suggest that ESG activities in environmentally sensitive industries in Asia-Pacific emerging markets are primarily driven by legitimacy-seeking behavior rather than direct financial incentives. JEL Classification: G30, G34, M14, Q56, O16]]>
Copyrights © 2026
