● Trade and climate
The significant trade concerns raised by the introduction of the European Union’s flagship Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism have not stopped a growing number of countries considering the introduction of similar measures – raising the risk of an uncomfortable patchwork of measures that could be severely disruptive to cross-border commerce. In this context, we have been working with a number of leading experts in recent months to establish new “best practice” principles on the design and coordination of CBAM instruments. A near final draft will be sent to national committees and members for review this week.
● Principles and proposals for effective carbon pricing: Since 2021, ICC has drawn on the experience of its global members to develop core principles and guidance for the effective design of carbon pricing instruments. In this third report, building on our past work, ICC provides guidance to governments and policymakers to address carbon leakage, promote linkage for greater international cooperation and make carbon pricing systems more efficient. Read the full article and report here.
● Making the NCQG a real catalyst of private sector climate finance: The stakes are once again high at the UN climate change conference COP29 happening in a year of record-breaking temperatures. Our eyes set on this year’s renewed focus on financing climate action, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) highlights key elements for establishing an ambitious, actionable and comprehensive New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) on climate finance. Read the full article and report here.
● How competition policy acts as a barrier to climate action: A new ICC report unveils how monopoly power can be used to accelerate climate action and tackle unsustainable practices. The report follows an analysis in 2023 which showed that competition authorities are increasingly offering business guidance on sustainability co-operation agreements. While much has been accomplished since, more remains to be done to transform competition policy from a barrier into an enabler of a sustainable economy. Read the full article and report here
● Global Principles for Effective Border Adjustments: Reliance on the “Brussels effect” to tackle carbon leakage risks undermining the global climate action agenda. ICC has called on governments to establish a new multilateral process to agree on global norms for the design, implementation and coordination of border carbon adjustments – reflecting growing concern within the business community about the potential adverse impacts of a proliferation of unilateral trade measures to tackle carbon leakage. Read the full article and report here.
● Voluntary carbon markets key to global net-zero ambitions: ICC is calling for stronger governance and transparency in voluntary carbon markets (VCMs), highlighting their critical role in reaching net-zero emissions by 2050. In a new report launched today, ICC emphasises the urgent need to scale VCMs as essential tools for emissions reduction and for channelling financial resources into climate action, particularly in vulnerable regions. Read the full article and report here
