This study proposes absolute greenhouse gas emissions as a superior risk metric for the Korean market, correcting for distortions in conglomerate intensity reporting. I document that the top 20% of emitters generate over 90% of total emissions and are...
This study proposes absolute greenhouse gas emissions as a superior risk metric for the Korean market, correcting for distortions in conglomerate intensity reporting. I document that the top 20% of emitters generate over 90% of total emissions and are structurally concentrated in the Value factor. Specifically, heavy emitters comprise approximately 47% of the Big Value portfolio versus 15.5% of Big Growth, creating a significant 16.3% carbon loading on the HML factor. A clear disconnect exists between pricing and performance: while the Implied Cost of Capital reveals a persistent 2–4% ex-ante risk premium for heavy emitters, this did not materialize in ex-post realized returns (0.4% difference), likely due to unexpected policy shocks. Furthermore, since light-emitter Growth stocks outperformed light-emitter Value stocks by 1.5% annually, I conclude that the recent underperformance of Value strategies stems from fundamental economic factors rather than the green preference of investors.