Latest news with #LanFoan
Reuters
04-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Exclusive: China signals investment in Brazil-led global forest fund, sources say
RIO DE JANEIRO, July 4 (Reuters) - China has signaled to the Brazilian government that it will invest in the Tropical Forests Forever Facility, a multilateral mechanism funding conservation of endangered forests around the world, two people with knowledge of negotiations told Reuters. An investment by China in the fund, which Brazil first proposed in 2023, would signal an important shift in climate finance, which has relied on funding from wealthy nations most responsible for global warming to date. China's commitment to the fund could pave the way for emerging economies to contribute financially to climate change mitigation, moving beyond the mandatory requirements imposed on developed nations by the 2015 Paris Agreement. The new approach comes as wealthy nations such as the United States retreat from ambitious pledges to fund projects curbing climate change, despite growing pressure from poorer nations struggling to cope with the impacts of a warmer climate. At last year's United Nations climate summit, leaders of developing countries lambasted wealthy nations over their annual $300 billion global finance target, covering just a fraction of the $1.3 trillion that economists say is necessary. Chinese Finance Minister Lan Fo'an expressed the intention to contribute to the forests fund, known as TFFF, in a meeting with his Brazilian counterpart Fernando Haddad on Thursday, sources said. They spoke on the sidelines of a meeting of finance ministers in the run-up to the BRICS summit of major developing nations that starts in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday. "(Lan) told (Haddad) that he considered the fund idea important and that China would collaborate," said one source, who witnessed the conversation, adding that the discussion did not involve specific values. The Brazilian government has taken the message from China's finance minister as a signal that Beijing will contribute funds, the sources said, although a public announcement is not expected until the U.N. climate summit, COP30, in November. China's embassy in Brasilia and Brazil's Finance Ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva had previously discussed the fund with Chinese President Xi Jinping during his visit to China in May, according to sources. Brazil also aims to attract other resource-rich developing nations to the fund, particularly from the Middle East, the sources said. The Brazilian government sees potential for the TFFF to be its main new deliverable at COP30, which it will host in the Amazonian city of Belem. Policymakers have envisioned TFFF as a $125 billion fund, combining sovereign and private-sector contributions, to be managed like an endowment paying countries annual stipends based on how much of their tropical forests remain standing. While sources do not expect the fund to launch at that scale, the idea received initial signs of support from the U.K., France, Germany, Norway, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates. Early backing from the United States evaporated after President Donald Trump exited the Paris Agreement. The interest in the TFFF underscores growing international attention on the preservation of tropical forests, rich in planet-warming carbon, as a powerful tool to combat climate change and stave off biodiversity loss.
The National
26-06-2025
- Business
- The National
UAE and Chinese officials seek to boost co-operation in various sectors
Bolstering co-operation between the UAE and China in energy, renewables, infrastructure and other areas was on the agenda on Thursday during a series of official meetings in Beijing. Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Adnoc's managing director and group chief executive, took part in the visit to China, where he met Lan Fo'an, China's Minister of Finance, as well as other Chinese officials and company executives. According to UAE state news agency, Wam, liquefied natural gas, petrochemicals and strategic shipping were among the topics discussed as the two countries sought to enhance partnerships. The recent meeting came several months after Adnoc signed the UAE's largest LNG supply agreement with various Chinese companies. In recent years, ties between the UAE and China have been on the rise as the Arab world's second-largest economy continues to diversify and grow. As of 2024, China was the UAE's largest trading partner, with more than $100 billion in total bilateral trade. Thursday's series of meeting between Dr Al Jaber and Chinese officials and business leaders also touched on both countries' shared interest in advancing industrial and technological partnerships that support sustainable development, enabling knowledge transfer and boosting global competitiveness, Wam reported.
South China Morning Post
25-06-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
China to private enterprises: invest in cross-border infrastructure like AIIB is doing
China will significantly encourage private enterprises to participate in infrastructure projects, including cross-border connectivity initiatives championed by the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), Minister of Finance Lan Foan said at the lender's annual meeting. As the global economy slows and international development aid declines, developing countries are increasingly constrained by limited public resources for connectivity investments, Lan said at the meeting in Beijing on Wednesday. 'Mobilising the potential of private capital for cross-border infrastructure, and building sustainable financing mechanisms, have become pressing priorities,' he noted. China's Private Economy Promotion Law went into effect last month, encouraging private enterprises to invest in infrastructure, Lan said, noting that the country would continue to improve its systems and environment to welcome more private sector participation in cross-border connectivity projects. To ensure that the private sector remains confident and willing to invest, Lan also called for efforts to reduce lingering concerns about risks related to geopolitics and defaults, and to improve ratings and expected returns of infrastructure projects through coordination with other regional development institutions. And the further mobilisation of private capital could help overcome the bottleneck of insufficient public investment for infrastructure development, he said.
Free Malaysia Today
25-06-2025
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
China urges AIIB to step up cross-border funding as global aid dries up
China has remained the biggest contributor to the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and has held 26% of the votes. (AIIB pic) BEIJING : China's finance minister today urged the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) to expand funding for cross-border connectivity projects in developing nations, citing a global decrease in international development funding. Lan Foan called on the 110-member lender to increase its support for emerging markets, noting that many were also under pressure from a slowing global economy. The finance minister didn't name the US, but prior to President Donald Trump's return to the White House this year, Washington was firmly established as the world's top development spender. China is the biggest contributor to the AIIB and holds 26% of the votes. Caught in a two-front trade war with the US and EU that threatens to derail a fragile export-led recovery, Chinese officials have increasingly emphasised ties with Southeast Asia, which last year overtook the EU to become the US$19 trillion economy's top export market. However, while Southeast Asia boasts some of the world's fastest-growing economies, including Vietnam, the Philippines, and Indonesia, it remains a long way from being a viable substitute for the US and EU markets, where consumption is much more potent than that of China's neighbours, analysts say. 'Global economic growth is slowing, international development aid funds are declining, and developing countries – constrained by limited public resources – commonly face a funding gap for cross-border connectivity investments,' Lan told the AIIB's annual meeting in Beijing. 'China looks forward to the AIIB demonstrating greater intensity and rolling out more measures to mobilise additional resources in support of cross-border connectivity,' he added. Lan also called on private firms to increase their involvement in cross-border investment projects.
Bloomberg
25-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
China's Lan Laments Decline of Aid in Speech to Development Bank
China's Finance Minister Lan Fo'an warned emerging countries are running short of money to spend on cross-border infrastructure, in remarks at a meeting of a multilateral lender based in Beijing. 'World economic growth is slowing down, international development aid funds are declining, and developing countries are generally facing a funding gap for cross-border connectivity investment due to limited public resources,' Lan said Wednesday.
