Guangzhou exchange kicks off, offering a hedge for carbon emissions trading in China’s 2060 climate change goal

04/20/2021

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Enoch Yiu | SCMP

The Guangzhou Futures Exchange has formally kicked off the process of developing emissions derivative products, putting a vital pricing mechanism into place to spur China to meet President Xi Jinping’s goal of attaining carbon neutrality by 2060.

The exchange, officially opened on Monday by Yi Huiman, chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) in the Nansha district of the Guangdong provincial capital. The exchange is the fifth financial market place in China for trading futures.

“The CSRC will lead the Guangzhou Futures Exchange to develop products, systems, and innovative technology to establish a futures market that can serve the real economy and green development,” according to an article in the state-owned Guangzhou Daily newspaper, posted on the Guangzhou government’s website, adding that carbon emissions futures, climate-related products and commodities index futures would be considered.

The market place, in which Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) owns 7 per cent, would be the next step in the financial infrastructure build-up to help the world’s second-largest economy go green. The futures contracts would augment and help traders hedge against risks in the nascent financial product, as a nationwide platform for trading carbon emissions spot contracts is expected to commence at the end of June.

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