Sustainability Report by Most Large Hungarian Firms in 2024

78% of Hungary's 100 largest companies prepared a sustainability report last year, and their performance in terms of emissions was better than the global average, KPMG said on Monday.

According to the consultancy's international survey, the leading domestic companies are performing in line with the global average in sustainability reporting, although the majority of them are foreign-owned companies reporting through their parent companies, so the results do not exclusively reflect the steps taken in Hungary. Domestically, the automotive and pharmaceutical companies proved to be the best performers with a 100 percent reporting rate, they wrote.

According to the release, 65% of Hungarian companies disclosing sustainability information cited climate change as a business risk, 64% cited social risks and 62% cited corporate governance challenges. Reducing carbon emissions has been a priority for years, and the proportion of Hungarian companies in the top 100 that have prepared a decarbonization strategy has risen from 70-92% since 2022. According to KPMG, this is a significant achievement given that the average for the world's 100 largest companies is 80%. However, they noted that as sustainability requirements become more stringent, companies will have to make greater efforts, and not just the largest ones, as small businesses will also be increasingly expected to meet these criteria. In the future, companies will have to report more comprehensively than at present on their sustainability strategy, their objectives, the risks and opportunities they face, they stressed.