New Delhi: Global trade slowed down in the second half of 2022, but demand for environmentally friendly goods stayed strong, the UN Conference on Trade and Development, UNCTAD, said on Thursday.
According to UNCTAD’s latest Global Trade Update, trade in “green goods”, grew by four per cent in the second half of the year, reaching a record $1.9 trillion in 2022.
“This is good news for the planet, as these goods are key to protecting the environment and fighting climate change,” said UNCTAD economist Alessandro Nicita, one of the report’s authors.
“Green goods that performed especially well in 2022 included electric and hybrid vehicles, non-plastic packaging and wind turbines” said the statement.
The findings come days after the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warned in its flagship report that greenhouse gas emissions needed to go down now, and be cut by almost half by 2030, if the goal of keeping temperatures from rising more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels is to be achieved.
Overall, global trade was worth a record $32 trillion in 2022, but deteriorating economic conditions contributed to a downward trend in the second half of the year.
According to UNCTAD, the outlook for trade remains “uncertain”; the UN body cited geopolitical tensions, high commodity prices and record levels of public debt combined with high interest rates, as reasons for concern.
The statement said Despite global economic uncertainties, UNCTAD said that growth in green goods is here to stay, fueled by momentum on climate action.
UNCTAD also warned that developed countries were seizing most of the economic opportunities related to green technologies, while developing countries were falling behind.
“Missing this green technological wave because of insufficient policy attention or a lack of investment targeted at building skills and capacities would have long-lasting negative consequences,” the UN body’s Technology and Innovation report maintained.
