China accounted for 95 per cent of the world’s new coal power construction activity in 2023, according to the latest annual report from Global Energy Monitor (GEM).
Southeast Asia's second-largest lender is likely to join rival DBS in backing a managed coal phase-out in line with the Singapore-Asia Taxonomy's criteria. But it remains unclear if the updated coal policy will be 1.5°C-aligned.
The El Niño weather phenomenon, smouldering peatlands, coal power and vehicular pollution caused a big drop in air quality in Southeast Asia in 2023. In Indonesia, Southeast Asia's most polluted country, air quality fell by 20 per cent.
China’s annual lianghui (两会) – also known as the “two sessions” – ended on 11 March, drawing the curtain on a key political event that saw limited climate targets set for 2024.