Green investments account for roughly 1% of the overall $12 trillion currently pledged by major economies recovering from pandemic-induced recessions, a BloombergNEF report finds.
Why it matters: The International Energy Agency projected in May that global investment in all forms of energy would fall by one-fifth this year due to the pandemic, with a 10% decrease for renewable power.
What's new: France and Austria have joined Denmark and the Netherlands as the only countries in the world to pledge more recovery funds to green energy than to CO2-heavy industries, according to Victoria Cuming, head of global policy at BloombergNEF.
- South Korea ($61 billion) has approved almost as much green economic stimulus as all European Union nations combined ($79 billion). Importantly though, that does not include a massive European Union package that has yet to be approved.
How it works: The vast majority of stimulus pledged by major economies is designated "neutral" by BloombergNEF — referring to loans or aid distributed with no public record of how it's been used.
- Most countries prioritizing green energy are putting money on electric vehicles, tackling emissions of methane (a potent greenhouse gas that's the primary component of natural gas), energy-efficient buildings, nature conservation, and managing forests.
What to watch: Because of how much money it has already dedicated, South Korea is "one of our question marks" on future green energy spending, Cuming said. Japan could make an announcement on more green COVID-19 funds closer to the end of the year.
- BloombergNEF says it's pessimistic about green spending from Australia, Brazil, Mexico and the U.S., depending on who wins the White House in November.