IETA's fifth GHG Market Sentiment Survey

 

The International Emissions Trading Association (IETA) GHG Market Sentiment Survey, now in it's fifth year provides a barometer of market sentiment towards the future direction of the carbon markets and gives useful insights into the challenges this might bring.

 

The survey, conducted on behalf of IETA by PricewaterhouseCoopers’ International Survey Unit and the report prepared by the PricewaterhouseCoopers Sustainability and Climate Change team summarises the responses of 757 individuals covering all aspects of the carbon markets across Europe, North America, Asia, Latin America, and Africa.

 

Key highlights include:

  • Expectations for future trading volumes in carbon markets have remained broadly positive, but confidence in future prices has fallen.
  • Regulatory uncertainty continues to suppress low carbon investment and market participants are losing patience.
  • Carbon price required to limit warming to 2oC will not emerge in the medium-term.
  • Opinions are divided on when new regional trading schemes will emerge, but the market is clearly losing confidence in a US federal scheme.
  • No major agreement is expected from COP16 in Cancun.
  • There is increasing uncertainty around the role that CERs will play in the international offset market.