China calls for more climate input ahead of COP29

As the COP29 UN climate change conference approaches, the Chinese government outlined on Friday the nation's progress in green and low-carbon development while calling for better coordination and more input to ensure successful outcomes at the summit.

The 29th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP29) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is set to take place in Baku, Azerbaijan from Nov. 11 to Nov. 22. At a press conference in Beijing on Friday, Chinese officials expressed support for Azerbaijan's COP29 presidency.

The Ministry of Ecology and Environment announced its commitment to advancing global, green and low-carbon transformation at the upcoming climate event. The ministry underscored the need for new finance targets and greater support from developed countries to ensure a coordinated global response to climate challenges.

"Climate change is a global issue that no country can tackle single-handedly, and no country can make itself immune from the impact. Unity and cooperation are the only way out. China stands ready to work with all parties toward a successful COP29," said Xia Yingxian, director of the Department of Climate Change under the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the country's top economic planner, also highlighted the latest progress in energy conservation, highlighting China's new program on renewing outdated equipment and encouraging trade-ins of consumer goods.

"Estimates show the program could renew over two million units of equipment, translating to annual energy savings of approximately 25 million metric tons. With consumer goods trade-in included, savings could exceed 28 million tons a year," said Wen Hua, deputy head of the NDRC Department of Resource Conservation and Environmental Protection.

Wen said this initiative serves as a significant driver of China's economic growth and green transition, promising long-term impacts on sustainable development.

Officials pledged that China will continue to push forward with its green transition and stands ready to share its experience with others, especially developing countries.

China calls for more climate input ahead of COP29

Job growth of the United States in October was far below previous expectations, and experts attributed it to disruptions of hurricanes and strikes by workers in the aerospace industry.

The U.S. Labor Department reported on Friday that nonfarm payrolls increased by 12,000 jobs in October, far below the previous forecast of 113,000 by some economists and also significantly lower than the monthly average level over the past year.

Manufacturing and retail trade employment declined by 46,000 and 64,000, respectively, while professional and technical jobs decreased by 47,000.

The sluggish job growth is attributed to hurricanes Helene and Milton that lashed across the southeastern United States in late September and early October, as well as the crippling strikes launched by U.S. workers, most at Boeing, according to experts.

After its Sept. 17-18 meeting, the U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) slashed the target range for the federal funds rate by 50 basis points to 4.75-5 percent, amid cooling inflation and a weakening labor market. This marked the first rate cut in over four years and signaled the start of an easing cycle.

The Fed will hold its next policy meeting from Wednesday to Thursday. The Chicago Mercantile Exchange Group's FedWatch Tool, which acts as a barometer for the market's expectation of the Fed funds target rate, showed that as of Friday morning, the probability of the Fed cutting rates by 25 basis points at the November meeting was over 99 percent.

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) reported on Friday that the U.S. Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) stood at 46.5 percent in October, down 0.7 percentage points from the 47.2-percent reading registered in September and hitting a new low of this year.

Any reading below 50 percent indicates the manufacturing sector is generally contracting. The number marks that in 23 of the past 24 months, the U.S. manufacturing sector contracted, showing a continuous weak demand.

Weak U.S. job growth in October attributed to hurricanes, strikes