New Delhi: ONGC and Reliance Industries are the only two Indian companies that disclose tax payments in almost all the foreign countries where they operate, says a report.
According to a report by Transparency International, the world's biggest companies disclose little or no financial details about their operations outside their home country.
Ninety of the 124 companies assessed do not disclose the taxes they pay in foreign countries, while 54 disclose no information on their revenues in other countries, it said.
Only BHP Billiton, Statoil and Indian firms ONGC and Reliance Industries disclose tax payments in almost all the foreign countries where they operate, the report added.
Two Indian companies Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd (ONGC) and Reliance Industries have performed well. ONGC is the first PSU to adopt IP by entering into MoU with Transparency International India (TII).
RIL is ranked at ninth position, while ONGC is at 26th place among the 124 companies list. RIL has scored 5.6 out of ten, while ONGC has scored 4.8, as per the report.
The report, Transparency in Corporate Reporting, analysed 124 companies from the Forbes list of the world's biggest publicly-traded companies.
The companies, whose combined market value is more than USD 14 trillion, are ranked on the basis of their reporting of the measures they take to prevent corruption, information about subsidiaries and holdings and key financial information about overseas operations.
“We need more transparency from multinational companies, whose power in the world economy closely rivals the biggest countries,” said Transparency International Chair, José Ugaz.
“With greater economic power comes greater responsibility. Bad corporate behaviour creates corruption that causes poverty and instability. By not responding to people's demands for greater transparency and accountability, companies risk harming their brand and losing customers,” Ugaz said.
The Berlin-based anti-corruption watchdog has named Bank of China, Honda Motor, Bank of Communications, Agricultural Bank of China and Sberbank as the five least transparent companies.
Italy's Eni, Britain's Vodafone and Norway's Statoil are at the top.
“Companies have to provide more information on their financial operations. Transparency allows citizens to find out the extent of a company's operations in their country. It is also essential to follow money flows between governments and companies, which can be subject to corruption,” Ugaz added.
