China's cumulative turnover of the carbon market hits nearly 27 billion yuan

(ECNS) -- The cumulative trading volume of carbon allowances in China’s national carbon market has reached 465 million tons as of last Monday, with a cumulative turnover of nearly 27 billion yuan (about $3.71 billion), according to Xinhua.

China's carbon market is operating in a stable and orderly manner overall, said Huang Runqiu, Minister of Ecology and Environment, at an industrial conference on Sunday in Wuhan, Central China's Hubei province.

Efforts will be accelerated to include key emission industries such as steel, cement, and aluminum smelting into the national carbon market, Huang said.

The national carbon emissions trading market, which launched in July 2021, has completed two compliance cycles. It covers annual carbon dioxide emissions of 5.1 billion tons, accounting for more than 40 percent of the country’s total emissions, making it the market with the largest coverage of emissions.

The cumulative volume and turnover of carbon emission allowances in the second compliance cycle of the national carbon emissions trading market increased by 47.01 and 125.26 percent, respectively, compared with the first compliance cycle, according to a report on the country's carbon market development.

In January 2024, the national voluntary greenhouse gas emission reduction trading market was officially launched, becoming another important market policy tool launched in China to help achieve the goal of carbon peak and carbon neutrality.