Larry Fink, Blackrock CEO

“The evidence on climate risk is compelling investors to reassess core assumptions about modern finance.”

David Solomon, Goldman Sachs CEO

“There is not only an urgent need to act, but also a powerful business and investing case to do so.”

Hank Paulson, former U.S. Treasury Secretary

“Climate change is not only a risk to the environment but it is the single biggest risk that exists to the economy today.”

Investors & Climate Change

Investors see Earth’s changing climate as both a large economic risk and opportunity. Physical climate risks can disrupt businesses and cities by disabling manufacturing facilities, restricting the transportation of goods, and requiring costly infrastructure investments to “climate-proof” their operations.

Firms slower to respond are also more susceptible to public policies and corporate pressures to reduce emissions. Companies working to identify and reduce environmental risks perform better than those that do not, in part because it indicates how forward-looking a company is. 

Muni market share at risk of climate-related GDP losses

The chart shows the estimated market value share of the muni market exposed to GDP losses of various magnitude through 2100 under a “no climate action” scenario.

Source: BlackRock

Fast Facts

USD estimated market size for low-carbon goods

of the world's largest companies track and disclose climate risk

%

of S&P 500 companies hold assets at high risk of physical climate risk

Heard Around the Country

How are climate & weather different?

Climate means the long term behavior of weather. Weather is local and short-term; climate describes the average weather for a region at a given time of year based on historical patterns. Climate change means the average temperature and precipitation is not following those old patterns.

Where is there scientific agreement?

The world’s leading scientific organizations, including MIT and NASA, agree that human-caused climate change is happening and just a few more degrees of warming will increase the risk of intense storms, sea level rise and other extreme weather events.

How much warming has happened?

People have caused about 1.5ºF of unnatural warming by putting greenhouse gases into the air since 1889. While it may not sound like much, the extra warming has been linked to some natural disasters such as wildfires in the U.S. and drought in the Mediterranean.

Visualizing Climate Change

Sources and Citations

Sources

  1. Climate Disclosure Project. Companies. www.cdp.net/en/companies
  2. BlackRock. Adapting Portfolios to Climate Change. www.blackrock.com/institutions/en-axj/insights/climate-change_en_AXJ  
  3. Moody’s. Climate change is forecast to heighten US exposure to economic loss placing short- and long-term credit pressure on US states and local governments. www.moodys.com/research/Moodys-Climate-change-is-forecast-to-heighten-US-exposure-to–PR_376056

Media

  1. Top image: Central Intelligence Agency. Ben Hider/NYSE Euronext.
  2. Bottom image: U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Josh Denmark.
  3. Video: Newsy. Goldman Sachs ending Arctic drilling funding.