Europe is punching below its weight in the climate-technology competition. The continent needs to facilitate risk capital markets and to invest more in research and development. This is the 4th post in a series of climate-related entries on the occasion of COP27. Virtually non-existent half a century ago, nowadays climate-friendly technologies and products like the electric car, the solar panel and the heat pump are all around us. This often creates the wrong impression that timely green transition is just...

While there are multiple headwinds weighing on growth, further policy tightening is expected amid the need to bring down elevated inflation Global economic growth prospects are confronting a unique mix of headwinds, including from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, interest rate increases to contain inflation, and lingering pandemic effects such as China’s lockdowns and disruptions in supply chains. In turn, our latest World Economic Outlook, released last month, lowered our global growth forecast for next year to 2.7 percent, and we...

Fertilisers play a significant role for food security. Their production and their cost largely depend on natural gas. Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, a global mineral fertiliser and energy crisis is now weighing on global food security and food prices. In this context, the European Commission presented today a Communication on ensuring availability and affordability of fertilisers. Today's Communication presents a wide range of actions and guidance on how to tackle the challenges that EU farmers and industry, as...

The return of inflation, higher interest rates, record-high debt levels and geopolitical tensions threaten to expose vulnerabilities within the financial system. This letter was submitted to G20 Leader ahead of their meeting on 15-16 November. The letter notes that developments since the Rome Summit have been a stark reminder that global financial stability should not be taken for granted. The return of inflation to levels not seen in decades has resulted in a strong interest rate response and significantly tighter financial...

Today, the EU Commission and the High Representative put forward an Action Plan on Military Mobility 2.0 and a Joint Communication on an EU cyber defence policy to address the deteriorating security environment following Russia's aggression against Ukraine and to boost the EU's capacity to protect its citizens and infrastructure. In particular, the Action Plan on Military Mobility will help European armed forces to respond better, more rapidly and at sufficient scale to crises erupting at the EU's external borders...

Today, the Commission presented a proposal to reduce air pollution from new motor vehicles sold in the EU to meet the European Green Deal's zero-pollution ambition, while keeping vehicles affordable for consumers and promoting Europe's competitiveness.   Road transport is the largest source of air pollution in cities. The new Euro 7 standards will ensure cleaner vehicles on our roads and improved air quality, protecting the health of our citizens and the environment. Euro 7 standards and CO2 emission standards...

We need to intensify the greening of our economies despite the energy crisis. Hastening the process will reduce the costs of transition and help to ensure price stability in the long run. This is the third post in a series of climate-related entries on the occasion of COP27. The current energy crisis has sent gas and electricity prices skyrocketing and brought the potential challenges and opportunities of the green transition into sharper relief. Does that mean that the green transition...

The global energy crisis highlights the need for a massive surge in clean energy investment The global energy crisis is fueling fierce debate around the world over which new energy projects should or shouldn’t go ahead. Conversations about energy and investment often fail to take into account the considerable lag between investment decisions and when projects actually go live. At the International Energy Agency (IEA), we warned years ago that global investment in clean energy and energy efficiency was not sufficient...