Latest news with #KateAbnett
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
May was world's second-hottest on record, EU scientists say
By Kate Abnett BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The world experienced its second-warmest May since records began this year, a month in which climate change fuelled a record-breaking heatwave in Greenland, scientists said on Wednesday. Last month was Earth's second-warmest May on record - exceeded only by May 2024 - rounding out the northern hemisphere's second-hottest March-May spring on record, the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said in a monthly bulletin. Global surface temperatures last month averaged 1.4 degrees Celsius higher than in the 1850-1900 pre-industrial period, when humans began burning fossil fuels on an industrial scale, C3S said. That broke a run of extraordinary heat, in which 21 of the last 22 months had an average global temperature exceeding 1.5C above pre-industrial times - although scientists warned this break was unlikely to last. "Whilst this may offer a brief respite for the planet, we do expect the 1.5C threshold to be exceeded again in the near future due to the continued warming of the climate system," said C3S director Carlo Buontempo. The main cause of climate change is greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels. Last year was the planet's hottest on record. A separate study, published by the World Weather Attribution group of climate scientists on Wednesday, found that human-caused climate change made a record-breaking heatwave in Iceland and Greenland last month about 3C hotter than it otherwise would have been - contributing to a huge additional melting of Greenland's ice sheet. "Even cold-climate countries are experiencing unprecedented temperatures," said Sarah Kew, study co-author and researcher at the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute. The global threshold of 1.5C is the limit of warming which countries vowed under the Paris climate agreement to try to prevent, to avoid the worst consequences of warming. The world has not yet technically breached that target - which refers to an average global temperature of 1.5C over decades. However, some scientists have said it can no longer realistically be met, and have urged governments to cut CO2 emissions faster, to limit the overshoot and the fuelling of extreme weather. C3S's records go back to 1940, and are cross-checked with global temperature records going back to 1850.
Japan Today
11-06-2025
- Science
- Japan Today
May was world's second-hottest on record, EU scientists say
A woman sunbathes at Retiro Park in Madrid, Spain, on May 31. By Kate Abnett The world experienced its second-warmest May since records began this year, a month in which climate change fueled a record-breaking heatwave in Greenland, scientists said on Wednesday. Last month was Earth's second-warmest May on record - exceeded only by May 2024 - rounding out the northern hemisphere's second-hottest March-May spring on record, the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said in a monthly bulletin. Global surface temperatures last month averaged 1.4 degrees Celsius higher than in the 1850-1900 pre-industrial period, when humans began burning fossil fuels on an industrial scale, C3S said. That broke a run of extraordinary heat, in which 21 of the last 22 months had an average global temperature exceeding 1.5C above pre-industrial times - although scientists warned this break was unlikely to last. "Whilst this may offer a brief respite for the planet, we do expect the 1.5C threshold to be exceeded again in the near future due to the continued warming of the climate system," said C3S director Carlo Buontempo. The main cause of climate change is greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels. Last year was the planet's hottest on record. A separate study, published by the World Weather Attribution group of climate scientists on Wednesday, found that human-caused climate change made a record-breaking heatwave in Iceland and Greenland last month about 3C hotter than it otherwise would have been - contributing to a huge additional melting of Greenland's ice sheet. "Even cold-climate countries are experiencing unprecedented temperatures," said Sarah Kew, study co-author and researcher at the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute. The global threshold of 1.5C is the limit of warming which countries vowed under the Paris climate agreement to try to prevent, to avoid the worst consequences of warming. The world has not yet technically breached that target - which refers to an average global temperature of 1.5C over decades. However, some scientists have said it can no longer realistically be met, and have urged governments to cut CO2 emissions faster, to limit the overshoot and the fueling of extreme weather. C3S's records go back to 1940, and are cross-checked with global temperature records going back to 1850. © Thomson Reuters 2025.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
EU open to lowering tariffs on US fertilisers in trade talks
By Kate Abnett BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union is open to lowering tariffs on U.S. fertiliser imports as an offer in trade talks with the Trump administration, but will not weaken its food safety standards in pursuit of a deal, EU agriculture commissioner Christophe Hansen told Reuters. "That is definitely an option," Hansen said, of reducing U.S. fertiliser tariffs. "That will be on the table. And I think that would be a huge way forward, and an offer as well to the U.S.," he said in an interview with Reuters on Thursday, adding that whether that would mean zero tariffs, or a reduction of current rates, would need to be negotiated. U.S. exports face the EU's standard tariffs of 5.5% on imports of ammonia, and 6.5% on nitrogen fertilisers, as well as an extra 29.48 euro-per-tonne anti-dumping duty on U.S. urea ammonium nitrate (UAN). UAN comprised around three quarters of EU imports of U.S. fertilisers last year, EU trade data shows. Reducing tariffs could boost Europe's purchases of U.S. fertiliser, to fill a gap as the EU cuts supplies from Russia. Around 24% of the EU's nitrogen fertiliser imports came from Russia in 2023, while the U.S. accounted for 8%, EU data shows. "I believe most of the Europeans would prefer buying fertilizers from the U.S. than from Russia," Hansen said. The EU will hit nitrogen-based fertilisers from Russia with tariffs rising to 100% over three years, a level that would effectively halt annual trade flows currently worth 1.3 billion euros ($1.5 billion). Hansen said the EU was also open to discussing increasing its purchases of hormone-free beef from the U.S., and a deal to have zero-for-zero tariffs on EU and U.S. wines. But he said the bloc would not compromise on its stringent food safety standards as it seeks a deal. "I don't see room for manoeuvre to roll back our high quality standards. But of course, on other points, on other products, we are very open to negotiations," Hansen said.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
New EU-Ukraine agri trade quotas to be 'in between' current deal and wartime exemptions
By Kate Abnett BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union and Ukraine are negotiating a new deal that will set import quotas on agricultural goods from Ukraine somewhere "in between" current levels and the temporary exemptions granted after Russia's 2022 invasion, the EU's agriculture commissioner told Reuters. The EU temporarily waived duties and quotas on agricultural products in June 2022 after Russia's full-scale invasion to help Ukraine compensate for the higher costs of its exports, after Russia threatened its traditional Black Sea shipping lanes. Those tariff suspensions expired on Thursday. The EU and Ukraine reverted to the pre-war regime of trade quotas on Friday, while the two sides negotiate a new longer-term deal - in which Brussels is seeking to strike a balance between supporting Ukraine in its war with Russia, and heeding European farmers' concerns about cheaper Ukrainian imports. "What will be negotiated will be something in between the quotas under the existing DCFTA and the autonomous trade measures, the volumes that have been exported there," EU agriculture commissioner Christophe Hansen said in an interview with Reuters on Thursday. The DCFTA refers to Ukraine and the EU's pre-war trade deal. The EU's "autonomous trade measures" temporarily suspended quotas on Ukrainian imports from 2022. Ukraine's farm minister Vitaliy Koval told Reuters this week that Kyiv was pushing for an agreement on higher quotas than it had before the war. EU farmers have complained that large shipments of cheaper Ukrainian sugar imports under the wartime tariff exemptions have undercut local supplies. The EU triggered "emergency brakes" to re-impose quotas on products including sugar and eggs in the past year, in response to surging imports. The EU's Ukrainian sugar imports soared to 400,000 tons in the 2022/23 season and over 500,000 tons in 2023/24, far exceeding the pre-war quota of 20,000 tons. Hansen said the new quotas on sugar would be "significantly higher" than those under the pre-war arrangements. "I think we can absorb a certain amount of those products," he said, while noting sensitivities around sugar, poultry and eggs. Negotiations on the new EU-Ukraine deal started on June 2. Hansen said it was feasible a deal could be reached by summer. "It depends now on both sides, I think technically that could be feasible," he said. Agricultural goods accounted for about 60% of Ukraine's total exports last year, with the EU buying around 60% of those goods, worth about $15 billion. A senior Ukrainian lawmaker said last month the loss of tariff-free access to the EU market could cost the country 3.5 billion euros ($3.99 billion) in annual revenue. "Our solidarity with Ukraine is as firm as ever, and therefore we are very committed to deliver this agreement as quickly as possible," Hansen said. The pre-war quota regime, which applies as of Friday, also includes lighter rules on import licenses for some goods like poultry and eggs, where instead of requiring licenses, quotas will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. ($1 = 0.8763 euros)
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
EU could approve Mercosur deal by summer, agriculture chief says
By Kate Abnett BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union could approve its planned trade deal with South American bloc Mercosur before summer, but it has not yet fixed a date to do so, EU agriculture commissioner Christophe Hansen told Reuters on Thursday. "It could be before summer," Hansen said in an interview. EU nations still need to approve the deal, which was finalised in December but has faced opposition from members including France, which argues that the pact would hurt European farmers who face stricter norms and regulations than their South American peers. French President Emmanuel Macron and Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva discussed their differences on the pact at a meeting in Paris on Thursday. Macron said the text could be improved with the insertion of mirror clauses. France has previously argued for the insertion of an emergency break clause to restrict imports if a sudden surge in imports destabilises certain EU markets. "This would indeed require that we go back to the table and reopen. I don't think that this would be helpful in this situation," Hansen said of the idea of resuming negotiations with Mercosur countries to add new safeguards to the deal. "I see from many different parts of the agriculture and food sector, they are really looking for having these new opportunities," he added.
