Top finance trade groups join calls for U.S. carbon pricing

FILE Photograph: A car or truck moves along an vacant highway all through the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Seattle, Washington, U.S. March 30, 2020. REUTERS/David Ryder/File Image

February 18, 2021

By Ross Kerber

(Reuters) – Key U.S. financial trade teams on Thursday joined phone calls for some kind of carbon pricing in the United States, underscoring the developing corporate enthusiasm for steps to sluggish the pace of local climate change.

“For markets to purpose you’ve received to have a value on carbon,” explained Tim Adams, president of the Institute of International Finance, in an job interview.

Its board involves leaders of financial institutions, insurers and asset administrators globally, such as from JPMorgan Chase & Co, Citigroup Inc and Point out Street Corp.

A coverage document the IIF is set to release with 10 other trade groups states that carbon pricing can “spur growth of local weather-associated financial solutions, market far more clear pricing of local weather-associated money dangers, and can inform and support scale crucial initiatives like voluntary carbon marketplaces.”

Other backers include the American Bankers Affiliation and the Expense Enterprise Institute, representing leading asset supervisors.

Adams said the team did not have a unique recommendation for what carbon pricing procedures may ultimately be adopted. Choices for governments to impose selling prices involve taxing emissions or developing emissions-trading units like a person running in Europe and yet another prepared in China.

The position is in line with current opinions from other U.S. business corporations these types of as the Small business Roundtable CEO team, which stated in September it supports carbon pricing.

U.S. President Joe Biden past month took methods to reduce emissions which include pausing new oil leases on community lands and cutting fossil fuel subsidies, but it is not distinct if he would seek to persuade Congress to tax carbon or impose other large greenhouse fuel limitations.

Before she was named Treasury Secretary by U.S. President Joe Biden, previous Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen backed a plan for the U.S. to tax carbon emissions and return the money as dividends to taxpayers.

(Reporting by Ross Kerber modifying by Richard Pullin)