Can ESG Integration Enhance the Stability of Disruptive Technology Stock Investments? Evidence from Copula-Based Approaches

Abstract

This paper provides an investigation into the dependence structure among different disruptive technology sectors driving the Fourth Industrial Revolution and scrutinizes the impact of ESG integration on shaping investments in different tech stock sectors in the presence of ESG consideration, represented by the ESG stock index, versus without specific ESG consideration, represented by the general stock index. The results show that (i) C-vine outperforms R-vine and D-vine when modeling the dependence structure of tech sectors. Intelligent infrastructure is the most crucial sector, with substantial reliance on smart transportation and advanced manufacturing. (ii) ESG integration reduces dependence, especially tail dependence, between tech sectors and the stock market, which benefits the future security sector the most and future communication the least. (iii) ESG integration mitigates risk spillover between tech sectors and the stock market, particularly benefiting final frontiers and intelligent infrastructure. The decrease in downside spillover is more significant compared to upside scenarios. For downside risk, spillover from tech sectors to stock indices is more reduced than the reverse, while the opposite holds for upside risk. These sectoral findings offer insights for market participants in financial market investments, financial regulators in risk management, and listed companies in ESG disclosure.