Singapore - Average investors will soon have a new index providing more information on which to base decisions regarding 700 companies on the Singapore Exchange, organizers said Thursday.

The index will be compiled by the centre for investor and corporate responsibility, one of four centres within the new Sim Kee Boon Institute for Financial Economics.

It will provide a ranking similar to credit ratings, said Associate Professor Jeremy Goh, one of the centre's co-directors.

Using publicly available information, Goh said, "We will evaluate companies on components such as disclosure and transparency, role of stakeholders, treatment of minority shareholders and the rights of such shareholders."

Changing the behaviour of firms is also an objective. "We have rules and regulations that ensure compliance, but these do not encourage firms to do better," Goh said. "We hope that companies will seek to improve their practices." (dpa)