16 November 2024: Sage and ICC launched the report at the United Nations global climate summit COP29, urging global decision-makers to bridge the gap between SMEs’ growing sustainability ambitions and their ability to act. The report highlights that while 86% of SMEs say that sustainability is important to their business, only 9.1% formally report on their impact, citing complex reporting requirements as a major roadblock (74%). The data revealed a “virtuous circle” between sustainability reporting, sustainable finance and climate action. SMEs that report on their

1 November 2024: In its latest release, the ICC Commission on Arbitration and ADR provides a step-by-step approach to identifying and assessing corruption in arbitration proceedings. The publication responds to frequent calls from the arbitration and anti-corruption communities for guidance on addressing corruption in international arbitration. Assessing red flags in three steps The proposed three-step methodology constitutes an innovative approach to address issues of corruption in international arbitration and promotes understanding of red flags or other indicators, their use and limits as a tool

18 November 2024: A new ICC report unveils how monopoly power can be used to accelerate climate action and tackle unsustainable practices. The report follows an analysis in 2023 which showed that competition authorities are increasingly offering business guidance on sustainability co-operation agreements. While much has been accomplished since, more remains to be done to transform competition policy from a barrier into an enabler of a sustainable economy. How far have we come in aligning competition policy with climate goals? Businesses commonly cite a lack

Putting the circular economy into motion: From barriers to opportunities 9 October 2024 ICC published in partnership with EY, the report – “Putting the circular economy into motion: From barriers to opportunities” – highlights the significant obstacles companies encounter when transitioning to circular business models that could otherwise deliver significant environmental, reputational and financial gains. The circular economy is intended to maximise resource efficiency and minimise environmental impact by promoting continuous use, reuse and recycling of materials and products. But the study concludes that

20 September 2023: Responding to a public consultation, ICC evaluated the updated European Commission guidelines for horizontal cooperation agreements (HGL) and block exemption regulations (HBERs), urging the consideration of small business needs and imperative for increased clarity and legal certainty. With a longstanding pivotal role in driving business priorities, ICC gathered business views on one of the most significant European reforms in competition and several types of cooperation agreements relating to R&D, specialisation, purchase, commercialisation, information exchange, standardisation and sustainability. In the comments, ICC