Countries participating in the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) agreed on Sunday in Azerbaijan to spend $300 billion annually on financing the fight against climate change and its consequences. However, according to recent reports, pledges to confront climate change are less than global spending per year on cosmetics. This indicates that pledges are still lagging behind the level required to achieve climate goals, which reflects the imbalance in global priorities.
Here are some ways to understand what this amount might be compared to key areas of the world:
- Cosmetics purchases
Bain & Company estimates the value of the global luxury goods market at 363 billion euros ($378 billion) in 2024. - Military power
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute says that spending by governments around the world on the military sector in 2023 reached $6.7 billion per day.
This means that the annual climate change financing target of $300 billion is equivalent to 45 days of global military spending. - Oil consumption
$300 billion is currently the price of all the crude oil the world uses in just over 40 days, according to Reuters calculations based on…
On global demand for crude oil by about 100 million barrels per day and Brent crude prices at the end of November. - Elon Musk
According to Forbes magazine, Elon Musk’s net worth reached $321.7 billion this month. Billionaire Musk shared,
The richest man in the world and owner of the social networking platform X, has so far founded more than six companies, including Tesla, which manufactures electric cars, and SpaceX, which produces rockets in the space field. - Hurricane losses
Hurricane Katrina, one of the most destructive and deadly hurricanes in US history, caused damage estimated at $200 billion in 2005.
According to AccuWeather estimates, the economic losses from Hurricane Helen, which hit with additional force due to climate change this year, could reach $250 billion in the United States.
Preliminary estimates by credit ratings agency Morningstar DBRS also indicate that Hurricane Milton, which also strengthened in ocean temperatures, could cost the insured and uninsured nearly $100 billion. - Copper trade
The GDP of Chile, the world’s largest copper-producing country, will reach $335.5 billion in 2023, according to World Bank data. - Greece’s financial rescue package
Eurozone countries and the International Monetary Fund spent about 260 billion euros ($271 billion) between 2010 and 2018 as part of financial rescue programs for Greece, the largest state rescue operation in economic history. - British bonds
The new British government needs to increase borrowing to finance its budget. Government bond issuances are expected to rise to £296.9 billion ($372.05 billion) for the current fiscal year. - Share in a company
According to data from the London Stock Exchange Group, a 10% stake in the giant Microsoft is worth just over $300 billion.
The market value of the American oil giant Chevron amounts to $292 billion. - Cryptocurrencies
The annual climate finance target is 75% of the total global market value of ether, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency.
3 million bitcoins may cover the annual climate financing goal, as the world’s largest cryptocurrency approaches the level of $100,000 after a strong rise supported by Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential elections on November 5.
