Tag Archives: china
China Property Buyers Head For London
http://blogs.ft.com/…/#ixzz2VtKU9vgg Jun 7, 2013 10:46am by Stefan Wagstyl Where are Chinese buyers of foreign property putting their money? London, that’s where. Chinese real estate investment in Europe this year has already hit €2.2bn versus €2bn for the whole of last year, with London the prime target, according to a LaSalle Investment Management/ Real Capital Analytics report. In fact, London accounts for 80 per cent of all Chinese property investment in Europe over the past five years. Another reason why prices aren’t falling. Here’s a chart that pretty much says it all: Source: Real Capital Analytics, LaSalle Investment Management[/background] In 2008 Real Capital Analytics recorded €1.3bn of transactions worldwide involving purchasers from China, mostly buying property elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific region. In 2012, Asia-Pacific still dominated with 60 per cent of €6.3bn in transactions. But Europe contributed 31 per cent, or €2bn. This year, as the chart shows, Europe is in the lead. Business people often moan that the UK’s transport links with China aren’t a patch on, for example, Germany’s. But that doesn’t seem to be much of an issue for property buyers. Continue reading
Carbon Pricing Is Catching On Around The Globe — Just Not In Washington, D.C.
By John Upton Shutterstock Should it cost money to do this? More than 40 national governments and 20 states or other “sub-national” governments are now charging polluters for emitting greenhouse gases, or plan to start in the coming years, according to a new report from the World Bank . The U.S., of course, is not one of the countries with a national cap-and-trade plan or carbon tax, but California and parts of New England are pushing ahead despite Congress’ refusal to act. All in all, about 7 percent of the world’s greenhouse gases are now priced — the equivalent of 3.3 gigatons of carbon dioxide out of the total 50 gigatons emitted annually worldwide. Not a lot. But, says the report, “If China, Brazil, Chile, and the other emerging economies eyeing these mechanisms are included, carbon pricing mechanisms could reach countries emitting 24 [gigatons of CO2 equivalent] per year, or almost half of the total global emissions.” From The W ashington Post : The World Bank report also notes that many cap-and-trade programs are beginning to join together — California is partnering with Quebec, and the E.U. has joined up with Switzerland — which, in theory, should make it easier for companies to make the easiest cuts first. And many programs are trying to expand coverage. Australia and Korea are hoping to get 60 percent of their emissions covered, while California is aiming for 85 percent. That said, the World Bank concludes that there hasn’t been nearly enough progress to avoid the worst effects of global warming. “The current level of action puts us on a pathway towards a 3.5–4°C warmer world by the end of this century, [which] would threaten our current economic model with unprecedented and unpredictable impacts on human life and ecosystems in the long term.” What’s more, many of these pricing programs could prove fleeting. In Australia, for instance, Liberal leader Tony Abbott has promised to dismantle the country’s carbon law if his party gains power in the September elections (which is looking likely). So carbon pricing could just as easily shrink as expand in the years ahead. And even where cap-and-trade systems are in place, polluters aren’t paying a hefty sum. Many systems are awash with a glut of carbon credits and allowances, which has pushed prices to “a historic low,” the World Bank says. From the report: Under conditions of lower growth the demand for carbon assets from compliance buyers fell [since the global economic crisis of 2008-09]. The imbalance created by reduced demand and an unchanged supply (put in place in a more favorable economic environment) in the main carbon markets has led to a surplus of allowances and credits in the market, causing carbon prices to plummet since mid-2011. Kyoto offsets are currently being traded at a few Euro (€) cents, while EU Allowance (EUA) prices fell from about €30 in mid-2008 to lows of below €4 in early 2013, substantially less than what is needed for a transition to a sustainable, low-carbon world. John Upton is a science fan and green news boffin who tweets , posts articles to Facebook , and blogs about ecology . He welcomes reader questions, tips, and incoherent rants: johnupton@gmail.com . Continue reading
Airlines Seek Carbon Market to Curb Post-2020 Pollution
By Kari Lundgren & Chris Jasper – Jun 3, 2013 Airlines backed a call for an emissions market to offset growth in their greenhouse gases after 2020, a step that could spur international talks on tackling pollution from the industry. International Air Transport Association members adopted today at their annual general meeting in Cape Town a resolution in favor of a market-based mechanism to help address airlines’ emissions. IATA produced the proposal before a September gathering of the United Nations’ aviation panel that will consider the industry’s tools to fight climate change. 18:14 June 3 (Bloomberg) — International Air Transport Association Chief Executive Officer Tony Tyler talks about profitability, international airline consolidation and environmental awareness. He speaks with Bloomberg’s Kari Lundgren in Cape Town. (Source: Bloomberg) It is “vitally important” to send a strong message that “we are an industry determined to address environmental performance, determined to continue to show leadership and determined to play our part in shaping a fair and equitable solution to this global problem,” Willie Walsh, chief executive officer of British Airways parent International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (IAG) , said in a statement today. The IATA resolution comes as representatives of governments in the UN’s International Civil Aviation Organization try to iron out a deal to reduce air industry pollution. Countries from Russia and China to the U.S. are seeking a global pact after protesting the inclusion of foreign flights in the European Union’s emissions-trading system last year. The bloc deferred the carbon curbs to help the ICAO talks. Significant Contribution “This is unprecedented for the airline industry to take such a powerful step,” said Dirk Forrister, president of the International Emissions Trading Association in Geneva. “It’s encouraging that carbon offsets are the central cost savings mechanism that they are using to meet climate goals at the lowest cost.” Under the EU’s carbon cap-and-trade system, designed to meet market-based emissions targets, tradable permits are allocated to polluters that must surrender enough of them to cover their emissions or pay a fine. Verified emissions reported by airlines in the EU were almost 84 million tons in 2012, or about 4 percent of the total in the bloc’s program, the European Commission said on May 16. IATA’s resolution is a “very strong message” that the industry seems ready to support a single global market-based mechanism, EU Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard said in an e-mailed statement today. “Time for governments to match this and deliver in ICAO,” she said. The post-2020 program would set the market’s emissions baseline at the average of greenhouse-gas output in the three years through 2020, IATA said. Overwhelming Majority The resolution was backed by an “overwhelming” majority of airline executives voting at the meeting, according to IATA Chairman and Qantas Airways Ltd. CEO Alan Joyce. Air India Ltd. and Air China Ltd. both voiced concerns. Market-based measures for airlines should be considered only as a secondary tool and as a part of a broader package of measures to cut greenhouse gases, Air India Chairman Nandan Rohit said. They shouldn’t be implemented unilaterally and “should only be applied within the national boundaries of a state and limited to the national carriers,” he said at the meeting today. “If a state decides to implement MBM on air carriers of third states there should be a bilateral agreement in place.” Welcome Departure The IATA proposal means that it only endorses a global program instead of a patchwork of national policy measures, while maintaining opposition to the EU emissions trading system, Brussels-based lobby group Transport & Environment said in an e-mailed statement today. “Today’s IATA resolution represents a welcome departure from their historical position that better air traffic control, better planes and biofuels alone can solve the problem,” said Bill Hemmings, aviation manager at Transport & Environment. “However, it kicks the ball in the long grass, until after 2020, and sets out a string of unworkable conditions.” EU carbon permits for delivery in December closed 0.8 percent lower at 3.92 euros a metric ton on the ICE Futures Europe exchange in London . The cost of UN certified emission reductions for December was unchanged at 41 euro cents a ton. “The biggest implication of this is it makes it more likely that international aviation will not come back into the EU ETS,” Trevor Sikorski , an analyst at Energy Aspects Ltd. in London, said by e-mail. “It seems very difficult for the European Commission to make a case for this, particularly if something similar comes out of ICAO this year.” Montreal-based IATA represents 240 airlines worldwide, comprising 84 percent of global air traffic. Members include Deutsche Lufthansa AG, British Airways, Singapore Airlines Ltd. (SIA) and Delta Air Lines Inc. To contact the reporters on this story: Kari Lundgren in London at klundgren2@bloomberg.net ; Christopher Jasper in London at cjasper@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Lars Paulsson at lpaulsson@bloomberg.net Continue reading
