Trade can be a powerful policy to achieving the Paris Agreement, the 2015 global accord under which all nations pledged to limit warming to well below 2 °C, pursue efforts to 1.5 °C, and submit updated national climate plans every five years.
This is according to the latest Global Trade Update from UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) which has been released ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30), scheduled for 10 to 21 November in Belém, Brazil.
The report provides fresh data and policy analysis demonstrating how trade can help accelerate the low-carbon transition and mobilise investment for climate action.
Key takeaways from the report include:
- Trade can drive climate action. Integrating trade policy and its tools into climate plans can speed the shift to low-carbon economies while diversifying exports and generating revenues for adaptation.
- Green exports are rising sharply. In 2024, exports of environmental goods reached $2-trillion (14% of global manufacturing goods traded). Biodiversity-based goods totalled $3,7-trillion in 2021 and non-plastic substitutes $485-billion in 2023.
- Clean energy is becoming cheaper. The average global cost of producing electricity from new solar projects fell 41% between 2010 and 2024. Onshore wind generation now costs 53% less than fossil-fuel power.
- Cooling technologies also show major potential. Trade in thermostats rose 32% and in insulating glass 43% between 2018 and 2023. The sustainable-cooling market is valued at $600-billion and could deliver $8-trillion in benefits for developing countries by 2050.
Tariffs and standards, however, remain barriers.
Average tariffs on solar and wind components range from 1,9% in developed economies to 7,1% in Africa, rising to 7,6% once non-tariff measures are included. Tariffs on plant-based plastic substitutes, averaging 14,4%, is double that of conventional plastics.