Trade to Black

U.K. market leads the pack in lucrative carbon-emissions trading

Newfangled carbon trading has become quite lucrative in the Old World, where the European Union's fledgling carbon market has taken off. Many doubted that the emissions-trading scheme (part of E.U. plans to meet Kyoto emissions-reduction targets) would prosper, especially since the U.S. -- world leader in market-driven economics -- didn't come to the party. But au contraire: The average daily volume of emissions trading increased threefold between January and June, to 1.1 million tons, and the value of a carbon credit more than tripled. London traders have embraced the new scheme, turning carbon trading into one of the fastest-growing market sectors in the City of London (the U.K.'s Wall Street equivalent). Some U.K. analysts say that British companies will soon have to factor the cost of emissions and other "climate risks" into their financials if they want to maintain market credibility.