Abstract

Objectives: This study evaluates whether the quality of ESG disclosures and the transparency of governance enhance the resilience of GCC corporations amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Utilizing an accounting framework, ESG scores serve as proxies for the integrity and transparency of non-financial reporting, thereby indicating reduced information asymmetry. Methods: Data collected from 26 firms across GCC stock markets spanning 2018 to 2022 yield a total of 32,085 observations. The methodology includes panel regression, difference-in-differences analysis, volatility assessment, and event studies. Results: The findings indicate that ESG quality was not significantly correlated with stock resilience or volatility during the COVID-19 peak periods, likely due to concurrent oil-price shocks. Nevertheless, firms exhibiting higher ESG disclosures experienced notably stronger returns during the post-COVID recovery phase (July 2021-December 2022; beta=+0.000458, p=0.004), suggesting that ESG factors contribute more substantially to recovery than to initial shock mitigation. Among the ESG pillars, governance disclosure emerged as statistically significant (beta = -0.001061, p = 0.003), aligning with regulatory frameworks within the GCC. Conclusions: Although preliminary owing to the limited sample size, these findings underscore the importance of analyzing ESG pillars separately and extending resilience studies beyond periods of crisis.