
-
Rain forecast adds new element to combustible Japanese GP
-
Ukraine mourns 18 killed in Russian missile strike
-
Germany's Mueller to leave Bayern Munich after 25 years
-
India's Modi clinches defence, energy deals in Sri Lanka
-
Verstappen snatches 'special' pole for Japan GP with lap record
-
Cambodia hails opening of naval base renovated by China
-
Verstappen snatches 'insane' pole for Japan GP in track record
-
Thousands rally for South Korea's impeached ex-president Yoon
-
New Zealand hammer Pakistan by 43 runs to sweep ODI series 3-0
-
Myanmar quake death toll passes 3,300: state media
-
India's Modi in Sri Lanka for defence and energy deals
-
'No one to return to': Afghans fear Pakistan deportation
-
Fractious Republicans seek unity over Trump tax cuts
-
America's passion for tariffs rarely pays off, economists warn
-
Trump's global tariff takes effect in dramatic US trade shift
-
North Korea's Kim fires new sniper rifle while visiting troops
-
Norris fastest in McLaren 1-2 as fires again disrupt Japan GP practice
-
Vital European defence startups still facing hurdles
-
'I don't have a voice in my head': Life with no inner monologue
-
Pakistan chasing 265 to win shortened third New Zealand ODI
-
US soybeans, energy: Who is hit by China's tariff retaliation?
-
Green, Sengun lift Rockets over Thunder, Celtics clinch record
-
Ariya downs defending champ Korda to advance at LPGA Match Play
-
Ovechkin ties Gretzky's all-time record of 894 NHL goals
-
Under-pressure Doohan vows to learn from Japanese GP smash
-
Harman goes four clear at Texas Open
-
McLaughlin-Levrone, Thomas cruise to wins at opening Grand Slam Track
-
Russian strike kills 18 in Ukrainian president's home city
-
US cardinal defrocked for sex abuse dies at 94
-
Lula admits 'still a lot to do' for Indigenous Brazilians
-
England, Germany and Spain on mark in women's Nations League
-
Bayern's Musiala to miss Inter first leg with injury
-
Judge orders return to US of Salvadoran man deported in error
-
'Class' Freeman eases Northampton past Clermont and into Champions Cup quarters
-
Amadou of Malian blind music duo dies aged 70
-
Freeman hat-trick eases Northampton into Champions Cup quarters with Clermont win
-
Defiant Trump dismisses stock market's tariff plunge
-
Musiala injury sours Bayern win at Augsburg
-
Peruvian schoolkids living in fear of extortion gangs
-
Top seed Pegula rallies to oust defending champ Collins in Charleston
-
Amadou of Malian blind music duo Amadou & Mariam dies aged 70
-
California to defy Trump's tariffs to allay global trade fears
-
Bayern's Musiala subbed off with injury days out from Inter clash
-
Russian strike kills 16 in Ukraine leader's home city, children among dead
-
NBA fines Grizzlies' Morant for imaginary gun gesture
-
Trump tariffs offer opportunity for China
-
UK comedian Russell Brand charged with rape
-
Marsh, Markram help Lucknow edge Mumbai in IPL
-
Trump gives TikTok extra 75 days to find buyer
-
Israel attorney general accuses PM of 'conflict of interest' in security chief dismissal
JRI | -7.19% | 11.96 | $ | |
SCS | -0.56% | 10.68 | $ | |
BCE | 0.22% | 22.71 | $ | |
NGG | -5.25% | 65.93 | $ | |
RBGPF | 100% | 69.02 | $ | |
GSK | -6.79% | 36.53 | $ | |
CMSC | 0.13% | 22.29 | $ | |
BCC | 0.85% | 95.44 | $ | |
CMSD | 0.7% | 22.83 | $ | |
AZN | -7.98% | 68.46 | $ | |
RIO | -6.88% | 54.67 | $ | |
VOD | -10.24% | 8.5 | $ | |
RELX | -6.81% | 48.16 | $ | |
BTI | -5.17% | 39.86 | $ | |
RYCEF | -18.79% | 8.25 | $ | |
BP | -10.43% | 28.38 | $ |

Clean energy largest driver of Chinese GDP growth in 2023: report
Clean-energy projects were the largest driver of China's economic growth in 2023, with Beijing investing nearly as much in decarbonisation infrastructure as total global investment in fossil fuels, according to a report released Thursday.
China is the world's biggest emitter of greenhouse gases driving climate change, but it is also the top producer of wind and solar energy.
Faced with soaring energy consumption, the country has turbocharged its use of renewables -- but also in 2022 approved its largest expansion of coal-fired power plants since 2015, despite President Xi Jinping pledging to peak CO2 emissions between 2026 and 2030.
Investment in "clean-energy" sectors accounted for 40 percent of China's GDP expansion last year, researchers at the Finland-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) said in a new report on Thursday.
"With Chinese investment growing by just 1.5 trillion yuan in 2023 overall, the analysis shows that clean energy accounted for all of the growth, while investment in sectors such as real estate shrank," the researchers said.
The researchers examined investment in solar power, electric vehicles (EVs), energy efficiency, railways, energy storage, electricity grids, wind, nuclear and hydropower.
These sectors received $890 billion in investment, almost as much as the total global investment in fossil fuels last year, CREA researchers said.
"Without the growth from clean-energy sectors, China's GDP would have missed the government's growth target of 'around 5 percent', rising by only 3.0 percent instead of 5.2 percent," the researchers found.
"China's reliance on the clean technology sectors to drive growth and achieve key economic targets boosts their economic and political importance," the researchers said. "It could also support an accelerated energy transition."
- EV glut -
They warned, however, that China could soon have excess capacity in the sector, and that "there is a limit to how much solar power, batteries and other clean technology can be absorbed".
"In order to keep driving growth in investment, clean technology manufacturing would need to not only absorb as much capital as it did in 2023, but keep increasing investment year after year," the researchers said.
The threat of overcapacity is beginning to trouble Chinese policymakers, with Vice Minister of Industry Xin Guobin saying that some businesses had been "blindly rushing in, and building redundant new energy vehicle projects".
Xin said at a press conference last week that the government would take measures to crack down on unnecessary EV projects.
Buoyed by years of government subsidies, China's electric car industry has exploded in the past decade, with homegrown BYD overtaking US carmaker Tesla in electric vehicle sales last quarter.
Between 2014 and the end of 2022, the Chinese government said it had spent more than 200 billion yuan ($28 billion) on subsidies and tax breaks for EV purchases alone.
Companies in other industries are looking to grab a share of the pie, including consumer electronics giant Xiaomi, which unveiled its first electric car model last month.
Chinese EV firms now face problems, however, including "insufficient consumer demand" and trade barriers in other markets, with many businesses still struggling to make a profit, Xin warned at a press conference on Friday.
International Energy Agency chief Fatih Birol warned last week that trade barriers in the clean energy sector could slow down the global energy transition.
Both the United States and European countries have signalled they might adopt more protectionist policies to buttress their own green sectors.
Washington is considering raising tariffs on Chinese EVs, as well as other goods like solar cells, media reports said in December.
EVs are already subjected to a 25 percent import fee introduced on Chinese automobiles during Donald Trump's administration.
In October, the EU announced a probe into China's EV subsidies after accusations that the resulting products undercut European competitors.
The bloc is also mulling a separate investigation into Chinese support for its manufacturers of wind turbines.
D.Kaufman--AMWN