UPDATE: China's environment ministry expands carbon market to steel, cement and aluminium

In a move marking the official launch of the expansion phase of China's trading market for carbon, on March 26 the Ministry of Ecology and Environment announced a work plan to incorporate three industrial sectors steel, cement and aluminum into the national carbon emission trading scheme (ETS).

The plan aims to bring 1,500 companies from these three high-emission industries into the trading program. Collectively, these industries emit approximately 3 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide annually, accounting for 20% of China's total carbon dioxide emissions. With this expansion, the ETS will cover a total of 8 billion tonnes