Published on: 2026-09-16
Source: People’s Republic of China — Translation
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Wuhan, September 16 /Xinhua/ — According to the 2026 Chinese Carbon Emissions Trading Market Conference held in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, Central China, by the end of August this year, the total trading volume on the Chinese carbon emissions trading market reached 961 million tons, and the total transaction amount was 65.7 billion yuan (about 9.71 billion US dollars).
According to the report published as part of this conference on Tuesday, in 2025 this market operated for 243 trading days, and the annual trading volume reached a record 235 million tons, which is 24.36% more year-on-year, with the total value of transactions amounting to 14.63 billion yuan.
In 2025, China expanded the market coverage for the first time. As of 2026, a total of 3,680 major enterprises emitting carbon from the power generation, metallurgy, cement, and aluminum industries were included in the system, accounting for about 8.3 billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions, or more than 65 percent of the country’s total emissions.
In addition, preparatory work is underway to include such sectors as petrochemicals, the chemical industry, the pulp and paper industry, and civil aviation into the aforementioned system.
In July 2021, China officially launched the national carbon emissions trading market, which has since become the world’s largest carbon quota market by total volume of traded greenhouse gas emission allowances.
China’s national voluntary carbon emissions reduction market has also gained momentum. As of the end of August, 41 projects had been registered, the total trading volume reached 21.71 million tons, and the transaction amount was 1.74 billion yuan.
In March, the mangrove forest restoration project in Xiapu County, Fujian Province / East China / became the first such project to be registered under the voluntary emissions reduction program, marking an important milestone in the protection and restoration of China’s marine ecosystems.
Speaking at a conference in Wuhan, Minister of Ecology and Environment Huang Runqiu stated that China will continue to strengthen the role of the carbon market in reducing emissions, diversify trading products and the circle of market participants, as well as expand international exchanges and cooperation.
According to the guidelines published last year, China plans to cover all major industrial sectors with a carbon emissions trading market by 2027.
Recall that China has committed to reaching peak carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060. -0-
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