Category: 3. Business

New research from GlobeScan and the ERM Sustainability Institute shows that climate change remains the most urgent global sustainability priority for 2025 according to sustainability professionals across the world, while concern for other critical issues such as biodiversity, diversity, and water scarcity has declined slightly. The findings also reveal a growing emphasis on renewable energy, low-carbon development, and cross-sector collaboration.

The survey of 391 expert stakeholders from business, civil society, government and academia across 57 countries, took place between 26 August and 21 October, 2025. The survey ranked the top sustainability issues, captured most important sustainability developments, and explored views of leadership in the NGO and corporate sectors. 

Top sustainability issues, developments and priorities

• Climate change remains the top concern (cited as urgent by 94 percent of respondents), while urgency around issues such as biodiversity, deforestation, diversity, water scarcity, and labor conditions in supply chains has weakened.
• Legislation continues to be viewed as the most impactful driver of sustainability progress, though its perceived importance has declined significantly compared to 2024 (cited by 18 percent of experts in 2025 vs. 33 percent in 2024).
• Emerging priorities include renewable energy and low-carbon development, biodiversity initiatives, and global/multi-stakeholder collaboration.

Expert views on corporate and NGO sustainability leadership remain steady

• Patagonia retains its position as the most recognized corporate sustainability leader (cited by 36 percent of experts), with IKEA, Unilever, and Natura &Co following. Meanwhile, companies such as Schneider Electric, Microsoft, Interface, and Ørsted gain recognition in specific regions.  
• WWF remains by far the most recognized NGO for sustainability leadership (cited by 44 percent of respondents), followed by Greenpeace (cited by 15 percent), World Resources Institute (cited by 12 percent) and The Nature Conservancy (cited by 10 percent).

Integrating sustainability into business strategy is viewed as key to sustainability leadership

• Making sustainability a core business driver is seen as the top attribute of corporate sustainability leaders (cited by 26 percent of respondents).
• Demonstrating evidence of impact and actions and focusing on supply chains are also consistent drivers of recognized leadership.

Chris Coulter, CEO at GlobeScan said: “This year’s survey highlights both progress and persistent challenges. Climate change remains the defining issue, but we also see stakeholders pointing to companies and NGOs that are focused on driving more innovation and collaboration in the sustainability agenda.”

Mark Lee, Global Director of Thought Leadership at ERM, said: “Our survey findings reflect the strong belief across sectors and regions that sustainability must be embedded in business strategy and drive commercial results. These are the key factors that define sustainability leadership today, and the companies that adopt this approach will be well-positioned to benefit from enhanced resilience and value creation opportunities.”

A clear mandate for action

The 2025 Leaders Survey results set a clear mandate for organizations to act decisively. Leadership organizations in all sectors are encouraged to focus on sustainability issues that deliver measurable impact and financial value, secure clean and reliable energy, and meet rising regulatory and stakeholder expectations, even as budgets tighten. Success will depend on falling costs for renewable and low-carbon technologies, accelerating operational and value chain decarbonization, and embracing digital solutions.

At the same time, the research findings reveal both progress and stagnation, underscoring that sustained innovation and cross-sector collaboration will be essential to maintain momentum and drive meaningful change in a rapidly evolving sustainability landscape.

---

Notes to editors

The GlobeScan / ERM Sustainability Institute Leaders Survey is an annual study that highlights the most urgent priorities in the current global sustainable development agenda.

The 2025 survey examines private sector and civil society sustainability leadership in addition to monitoring priority issues over time and tracking notable shifts in their perceived importance. This year’s survey was conducted between August and October 2025 and reflects input from almost 400 sustainability experts across nearly 60 countries.

---

About GlobeScan

GlobeScan is an insights and advisory firm specializing in trust, sustainability, and engagement.

We equip clients with insights to navigate shifting societal and stakeholder expectations, crafting evidence-based strategies that reduce risks and create value for their organizations and society. 

Established in 1987, we have offices in Cape Town, Hong Kong, Hyderabad, London, Paris, San Francisco, São Paulo, Singapore, and Toronto. GlobeScan is a participant of the UN Global Compact and a Certified B Corporation. 

Learn more here.

About the ERM Sustainability Institute 

The Sustainability Institute is ERM’s primary platform for thought leadership. The purpose of the Institute is to define, accelerate, and scale sustainability performance by developing actionable insight for business. We provide an independent and authoritative voice to decode complexities. The Institute identifies innovative solutions to global sustainability challenges built on ERM’s experience, expertise, and commitment to transformational change. 

About ERM

Sustainability is our business.

As the world’s largest specialist sustainability consultancy, ERM partners with clients to operationalize sustainability at pace and scale, deploying a unique combination of strategic transformation and technical delivery capabilities. This approach helps clients to accelerate the integration of sustainability at every level of their business.

With more than 50 years of experience, ERM’s diverse team of 8000+ experts in 40 countries and territories helps clients create innovative solutions to their sustainability challenges, unlocking commercial opportunities that meet the needs of today while preserving opportunity for future generations. Learn more here.

Lloyd’s Register (LR) secured two major honours at the 2025 B2B Marketing Awards last week. In collaboration with Agency Revere, LR won Gold for Best Thought Leadership Programme and Silver for Most Commercially Successful Campaign for its Fuel for Thought programme®.  

The B2B Marketing Awards are among the industry’s most competitive and respected accolades, celebrating excellence in business-to-business marketing. This year’s event saw strong global competition from leading brands including SAP, Visa, and Unilever, making LR’s achievement even more significant. 

Fuel for thought® was praised by judges for its clarity, depth and creative execution. Developed to navigate the complexity of maritime decarbonisation, the programme delivers practical, solution-agnostic insight on alternative fuels including methanol, hydrogen and ammonia. Its distinctive identity, supported by creative and engaging brand assets, has helped position LR as a trusted adviser to policymakers, influencers and senior industry stakeholders.

The campaign delivered sizeable commercial returns, driving significant uplift in brand awareness and stimulating strong engagement with thought-leadership content. Its multi-format approach, grounded in audience insight and supported by targeted distribution, played a central role in accelerating pipeline growth and enhancing LR’s strategic positioning in the global maritime market. 

Mark Warner, Global Client Marketing Director at Lloyd’s Register, said: “Fuel for thought® is a project the whole team is genuinely proud of, and these awards are a wonderful recognition of that.  

“They not only reflect the strength of our partnership with Agency Revere, but also the position LR has earned as a global thought leader in the energy transition and the future of maritime. Being acknowledged alongside some of the world’s most recognised brands is incredibly encouraging, and it motivates us to keep creating impactful, meaningful work.” 

WASHINGTON — WASHINGTON (AP) — Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang met separately with President Donald Trump and Republican senators Wednesday as tech executives work to secure favorable federal policies for the artificial intelligence industry, including the limited sale of Nvidia’s highly valued computer chips to U.S. rivals like China.

Huang’s closed-door meeting with Republicans on the Senate Banking Committee came at a moment of intensifying lobbying, soaring investments and audacious forecasts by major tech companies about AI’s potential transformative effects.

Huang is among the Silicon Valley executives who warn that any restrictions on the technology will halt its advancement despite mounting concerns among policymakers and the public about AI’s potential pitfalls or the ways foreign rivals like China may use American hardware.

“I’ve said repeatedly that we support export control, that we should ensure that American companies have the best and the most and first,” Huang told reporters before his meeting on Capitol Hill.

He added that he shared concerns about selling AI chips to China but believed that restrictions haven’t slowed Chinese advancement in the AI race.

“We need to be able to compete around the world. The one thing we can’t do is we can’t degrade the chips that we sell to China. They won’t accept that. There’s a reason why they wouldn’t accept that, and so we should offer the most competitive chips we can to the Chinese market,” Huang said.

Huang also said he’d met with Trump earlier Wednesday and discussed export controls for Nvidia’s chips. Huang added that he wished the president “a happy holidays.”

The Trump administration in May reversed Biden-era restrictions that had prevented Nvidia and other chipmakers from exporting their chips to a wide range of countries. The White House in August also announced an unusual deal that would allow Nvidia and another U.S. chipmaker, Advanced Micro Devices, to sell their chips in the Chinese market but would require the U.S. government to take a 15% cut of the sales.

The deal divided lawmakers on Capitol Hill, where there is broad support for controls on AI exports.

Members of Congress have generally considered the sale of high-end AI chips to China to be a national security risk. China is the main competitor to the U.S. in the race to develop artificial superintelligence. Lawmakers have also proposed a flurry of bills this year to regulate AI’s impact on dozens of industries, though none have become law.

Most Republican senators who attended the meeting with Huang declined to discuss their conversations. But a handful described the meeting as positive and productive.

“For me, this is a very healthy discussion to have,” said Sen. Mike Rounds, a South Dakota Republican. Rounds said lawmakers had a “general discussion” with Huang about the state of AI and said senators were still open to a wide range of policies.

Asked whether he believed Nvidia’s interests and goals were fully aligned with U.S. national security, Rounds replied: “They currently do not sell chips in China. And they understand that they’re an American company. They want to be able to compete around the rest of the world. They’d love to some time be able to compete in China again, but they recognize that export controls are important as well for our own national security.”

Other Republicans were more skeptical of Huang’s message.

Sen. John Kennedy, a Louisiana Republican who sits on the upper chamber’s Banking Committee, said he skipped the meeting entirely.

“I don’t consider him to be an objective, credible source about whether we should be selling chips to China,” Kennedy told reporters. “He’s got more money than the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, and he wants even more. I don’t blame you for that, but if I’m looking for someone to give me objective advice about whether we should make our technology available to China, he’s not it.”

Some Democrats, shut out from the meeting altogether, expressed frustration at Huang’s presence on Capitol Hill.

“Evidently, he wants to go lobby Republicans in secret rather than explain himself,” said Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee.

Warren added that she wanted Huang to testify in a public congressional hearing and answer “questions about why his company wants to favor Chinese manufacturers over American companies that need access to those high-quality chips.”

Posted on December, 04 2025

Green refinancing operations could help shield Europe from fossil fuel price shocks and stabilise inflation, finds a new WWF study.

By offering preferential rates to commercial banks for financing Taxonomy-aligned projects such as renewable power, upgraded energy grids, energy-efficient buildings, and sustainable transport, the European Central Bank (ECB) can strengthen price stability and accelerate the energy transition.

“Aligning monetary policy with climate goals is a win-win, for both the climate and the economy,” said Dominyka Nachajute, Sustainable Finance Policy Officer at WWF European Policy Office. “A delayed transition prolongs Europe’s vulnerability to climateflation, price pressures driven by climate impacts, and fossilflation, inflationary shocks caused by fossil fuel volatility, undermining both environmental and economic resilience.”

Based on data from 47 Eurozone banks, the study finds that green refinancing operations could be implemented immediately, with at least €10 billion annually in green lending already eligible today. With banks increasingly familiar with EU Taxonomy disclosures, past barriers are falling, creating a clear window for the ECB to act and strengthen Europe’s economic resilience and energy independence.

WWF calls on the ECB to design a green interest rate feature, based on the EU Taxonomy, within the new structural refinancing operations foreseen under its forthcoming operational framework. This would ensure monetary policy recognises the central role of the green transition in delivering long-term price stability. In parallel, the European Commission needs to reinforce Taxonomy disclosure and usability to provide the granular, verifiable data needed for implementation and credibility.

“Green refinancing operations are fully compatible with the ECB’s price stability mandate and build on its long-standing experience with refinancing tools. The ECB already has the expertise, operational frameworks, and data infrastructure to design this instrument, and with the EU Taxonomy providing clear eligibility criteria, all the prerequisites are in place for decisive action that supports price stability and contributes to the EU’s climate and energy objectives”, said the author of the study, Stanislas Jourdan, associate fellow at the New Economics Foundation and Sustainable Finance Lab.

The report urges swift coordination between the ECB, the European Commission and the European Banking Authority to overcome remaining barriers and unlock the full potential of green refinancing operations, an essential step to secure Europe’s price stability and climate objectives.

A pornography company that runs 18 adult websites has been fined £1m by the watchdog Ofcom for not having strong enough age checks.

AVS Group Ltd has been hit with the fine, plus a further £50,000 for failing to respond to information requests.

It is the third time that the internet and communications watchdog has fined a company in relation to the UK’s Online Safety Act, which came into force in July.

While AVS has implemented what it refers to as age verification, the regulator’s investigation did not deem it to be highly effective.

The company now has 72 hours to introduce age checks that Ofcom will view as effective or face a penalty of £1,000 a day.

This is on top of a £300 daily penalty until it responds to requests for information or for a maximum of 60 days.

Ofcom has opened investigations into 92 online services since the new rules were introduced.

It is prioritising sites with millions of monthly UK visitors and, therefore, the level of harm that they may pose.

Ofcom also said one major social media company, which it did not name, may face formal action if it did not improve its compliance procedures.

The Online Safety Act brought in a new set of laws aimed at protecting children and adults from harmful content.

More than half of the top 100 most popular adult services in the UK have introduced age checks since the new rules came into force in July, as well as social media platforms such as X, TikTok and Reddit, the regulator said.

Oliver Griffiths, Ofcom’s online safety group director, said: “The tide on online safety is beginning to turn for the better.

“But we need to see much more from tech companies next year and we’ll use our full powers if they fall short.”

The technology secretary, Liz Kendall, said: “Since the enforcement of the Online Safety Act, platforms have finally started taking responsibility for protecting children and removing illegal and hateful content.

“Ofcom has the government’s full backing to use all its powers to ensure that services put users’ safety first. Keeping children safe online is this government’s and my personal priority.”

“Crops look better and profitability is returning even in challenging years”: Mars champions Europe’s farmers and calls for the conditions to scale climate-smart agriculture

• More than 300 farmers across Europe already working with Mars to advance climate-smart agriculture practices on 60,900 hectares of land in parts of its pet care supply chain.
• Farmers across Europe report seeing “profitability returning”, more consistent yields, “better soil structure” and crops that “look better” thanks to regenerative techniques like cover cropping, crop rotation and reduced tillage.
• This World Soil Day, Mars is calling on European policymakers to help farmers thrive by creating an enabling environment that promotes public-private partnerships, outcomes-based public policy, and harmonized measurement aligned with global standards.

LONDON, UK (December 4, 2025) – On World Soil Day, Mars, Incorporated, a global leader in pet care products and services, confectionery, snacking and food and the maker of some of the world’s most-loved brands, is joining with partners and farmers in Europe to call on policymakers and scientists across Europe to enable scalable solutions that support farmers in adopting climate-smart agriculture practices. As Europe strengthens its role in shaping global agrifood policy and drives momentum behind regenerative, outcome-based farming, the region has become a natural focus for accelerating climate-smart solutions.¹

Last year, Mars announced multiple partnerships with leading agricultural suppliers and technical implementation experts including Agreena, Biospheres, Soil Capital and others to deliver tailored support across Europe’s diverse farming systems. Across Mars Petcare’s European supply chain, more than 300 farmers have implemented climate-smart practices, across over 60,900 hectares, from using cover crops in Buckinghamshire, UK, to implementing no-till cultivation in Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland.  

A year on from the last major announcement, farmers say these regenerative practices have shown positive results. Antony, a farmer in South East England in a Mars climate-smart agriculture program, said: “We are on heavy clay soils, which were very prone to water logging. [Since adopting regenerative practices] we are much less concerned about water logging as infiltration rates are better, and we don’t worry so much about drought as water holding capacity is much improved. This has enabled us to operate a longer weather window, creating more field working days and reducing our labour charges accordingly”, adding that the “crops look better and profitability is returning even in challenging years.”

 

 

However, Mars emphasizes that systemic climate-smart agriculture change requires greater collaboration, especially considering barriers facing farmers like financial risk and lack of technical training.  

Paolo Rigamonti, Regional President Europe Pet Nutrition at Mars, said: “Europe’s farmers play a vital role in improving soil health. Through regenerative techniques, they can store more carbon, improve water filtration and support local ecosystems. Across Europe, Mars is investing to help farmers adopt these practices – but they can’t do it alone. We need the right conditions in place, and policies that accelerate what is already working.”

To accelerate this transformation and help farmers thrive, Mars is calling on policymakers and scientists to strengthen public policy that enables action at scale by:

• Unlocking public-private partnerships to deliver essential training, financial support and technical assistance for farmers.
• Prioritizing outcomes-based policies that respect regional differences and give farmers flexibility in how they achieve regenerative goals.
• Measuring impact through harmonized metrics aligned with global science-based standards such as Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and GHG Protocol.  

Izabela, a farmer in northern Poland who has received financial and technical support for regenerative practices, said her farm has benefited from “increased water retention, which provides greater drought resistance and greater water absorption in the event of sudden heavy rains. We were still able to harvest this year, even though the fields were flooded after heavy rain in July.” Highlighting the need for more outcome-based policies, Izabela said: “Policy based on the results of specific agricultural practices supports the development of agriculture and provides freedom for proper management, while strict regulations detached from real needs and weather patterns can only harm farmers, the soil and crops.”

Farmers in Mars climate-smart agriculture programs need solutions that are tailored to Europe’s diverse landscapes – from drought adaptation to carbon sequestration. Success requires the right support system to accelerate and scale these practices across Europe.  

Norbert is a farmer in southern Hungary whose farm has been impacted by extremes of climate in recent years through prolonged dry periods. Improving climate resilience was among his motivations for implementing regenerative practices on his farm. Norbert said: “By abandoning rotational cultivation, the number of soil-dwelling organisms has increased significantly. The better soil structure and surface coverage can drain sudden rainfall faster, which usually results in a spectacular difference.”

Through collaborative partnerships and a clear call to action for policymakers, scientists and industry leaders, Mars continues its focus on scaling climate-smart agriculture in its value chain, which will help to deliver more than one million acres of regenerative practices across the globe by 2030. As part of the Mars Net Zero Roadmap, scaling climate-smart agriculture across its value chain is one of several critical initiatives Mars is advancing to reduce its GHG footprint. In its Sustainable in a Generation Report 2024, Mars, Incorporated announced 1.9% GHG emissions reduction compared with 2023, with an overall absolute reduction of 16.4% across the full value chain against a baseline of 2015 worldwide.  

Simon Haldrup, CEO at Agreena, said: “Scaling regenerative agriculture across Europe demands genuine collaboration between the private sector, policymakers and farmers – especially as farmers face growing pressures. Through Agreena’s partnership with Mars, we’re helping deliver the financial support and verified measurement needed to unlock real change on the ground. On World Soil Day, we’re reminded of the power beneath our feet, and Agreena echoes Mars’ call for policymakers to create the enabling environment required to rapidly scale these proven practices across Europe’s diverse farming landscapes.”  

Sébastien Roumegous, CEO at Biospheres, said: “Across Europe, the shift toward regenerative agriculture is progressing at uneven speeds. In countries like France, strong technical support helps farmers adopt new models, while in others, the lack of reliable local partners slows the transition. Our collaboration with Mars bridges this gap: it combines targeted financial support, robust scientific measurement and hands-on agronomic guidance that farmers can trust. By working together, we’re creating the conditions for regenerative practices to scale consistently across diverse landscapes and ensuring soils remain a foundation of resilience for future generations.”

Chuck de Liedekerke, CEO at Soil Capital, said: “At Soil Capital, our ambition is to make regenerative agriculture the norm. Expanding regenerative practices across Europe depends on consistent collaboration between farmers, businesses and policymakers. Our work with Mars rewards farmers who receive financial support because they deliver real, verified impact on the ground. The next step is for policymakers to put in place the framework to scale what’s already working across Europe’s diverse farm realities.” 
 

---

1. EU agricultural outlook 2024-35: A resilient sector adapts to climate change, sustainability concerns, and shifting consumer demand – Agriculture and rural development
 

About Mars, Incorporated 
Mars, Incorporated is driven by the belief that the world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today. As an approximately $55bn family-owned business, our diverse and expanding portfolio of leading pet care products and veterinary services support pets all around the world and our quality snacking and food products delight millions of people every day. We produce some of the world’s best-loved brands including ROYAL CANIN®, PEDIGREE®, WHISKAS®, CESAR®, DOVE®, EXTRA®, M&M’S®, SNICKERS® and BEN’S ORIGINAL™. Our international networks of pet hospitals, including BANFIELD™, BLUEPEARL™, VCA™ and ANICURA™ span preventive, general, specialty, and emergency veterinary care, and our global veterinary diagnostics business ANTECH® offers breakthrough capabilities in pet diagnostics. The Mars Five Principles—Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efficiency and Freedom—inspire our 150,000 Associates to act every day to help create a better world for people, pets and the planet.  

For more information about Mars, please visit www.mars.com. Join us on Facebook(Opens a new window), Instagram(Opens a new window), LinkedIn(Opens a new window) and YouTube(Opens a new window).

About Agreena  
Headquartered in Denmark, Agreena is powering the global transition to regenerative agriculture, operating Europe’s leading soil carbon programme. Through its flagship AgreenaCarbon project, which is the first large-scale agricultural cropland initiative verified under Verra’s world-renowned Verified Carbon Standard, Agreena collaborates with thousands of farmers across 4.5 million hectares of arable land in 20 markets.  

Agreena finances farmers’ transition to sustainable practices, measures and verifies the climate impact with field-level accuracy and offers climate solutions to corporates to achieve their sustainability goals. Agreena’s holistic solution is built on three pillars: farmer engagement, which provides essential financing, knowledge, and resources to support growers in making impactful change; scalable dMRV, integrating satellite imagery, ground-level soil sampling and proprietary AI models to precisely quantify practice changes and carbon outcomes at scale; and verified carbon and environmental data, empowering companies to make credible sustainability claims, support farmer-led climate action and access high-integrity carbon credits. Visit www.agreena.com.

About Biospheres  
BIOSPHERES is an international organization committed to accelerating the transition toward large-scale regenerative agriculture.  

Present in more than 20 countries, BIOSPHERES supports farmers, companies and territories in restoring ecosystems while improving the long-term profitability and resilience of agricultural systems.

Its approach combines scientific methodologies, field expertise, and strategic partnerships with major agri-food players to deploy regenerative solutions at scale.

From soil health assessment to change-management programs, from carbon and biodiversity strategies to on-farm coaching, BIOSPHERES works across the entire value chain to help organizations build productive, climate-resilient and ecosystem-positive agriculture. Driven by a clear ambition, making regenerative agriculture viable, measurable and replicable, the team develops tools, training programs and field projects that translate science into practical, scalable action. A sustainable, profitable and regenerative agriculture is possible — and it is already underway. 

About Soil Capital  
Founded in 2013, Soil Capital is a certified B Corp on a mission to support farmers in their transition to regenerative and sustainable agriculture. Operating across the United Kingdom, France, and Belgium, Soil Capital has developed an innovative programme that uses agronomic intelligence to connect businesses seeking more resilient supply chains with farmers rewarded for improving soil health, mitigating climate change, and reinforcing food security. To date, ‍Soil Capital has distributed more than €15 million directly to farmers, rewarding their adoption of regenerative practices. The programme is built on a reliable methodology that complies with the FLAG requirements of the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), helping companies reduce their scope 3 emissions and sustainable goals. Learn more at www.soilcapital.com.

A little more than a year ago, Mario Draghi presented his report ‘The future of European competitiveness’, stating that unless EU Member States make huge investments and bold reforms, the European competitiveness will be at risk. Global competition, especially from the US and China, is intensifying at a dizzying pace, and the EU must act now to secure the Union’s future competitiveness and common security.

This report presents a comprehensive, data-driven assessment of Sweden’s competitive standing in 48 Key Strategic Technologies that are crucial for its future prosperity, economic resilience, and national security. The analysis is based on three major datasets covering 2010–25: scientific publications, patent documents, and investment data. The findings reveal a mixed landscape of established leadership, critical vulnerabilities, and untapped potential, demanding strategic action to secure Sweden’s place in an intensifying global technology race.

 

This report was commissioned and published by The Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA) as part of the research project ‘Mapping Sweden’s Competitiveness and Investment Priorities in Key Strategic Technologies,’ with research and analysis conducted by CEPS. The project aims to provide a comprehensive assessment of Sweden’s strategic positioning in key technology sectors and identify priority areas for future investment and policy development. This research examines Sweden’s competitive strengths, emerging challenges and opportunities within the evolving global technology landscape. The findings, conclusions and recommendations presented reflect the CEPS team’s independent research and expert assessment.

 

Dec. 4, 2025, London: As the global energy transition accelerates, rising demand for some critical metals is outpacing supply chain capacity, creating structural market imbalances that threaten to constrain decarbonisation efforts, according to BloombergNEF’s Transition Metals Outlook 2025. Copper, graphite, aluminium, lithium, cobalt and manganese are all seeing sharp demand increases thanks to electric vehicles, energy storage, grid expansion and data centers.

According to the report, China continues to dominate global supply chains, holding midstream capacity in aluminium, graphite, manganese, cobalt and rare earths. Other regions have made efforts to diversify: Europe and the US have strengthened domestic supply for some metals, while Southeast Asia has expanded nickel production, with Indonesia and the Philippines anchoring upstream operations. Australia, Brazil, Canada, Indonesia and South Africa are implementing policy measures such as export restrictions, sovereign investments and fiscal incentives. Nonetheless, upstream refining capacity remains largely concentrated in China, leaving many regions dependent on imports and exposing global supply chains to disruption.

Copper faces significant pressure, with the market entering a structural deficit next year and facing a projected shortfall of 19 million metric tons by 2050 if new mines and recycling facilities are not developed. Graphite is expected to face a technical deficit after 2030 as battery demand grows faster than primary supply. Meanwhile, lithium production is set to expand significantly, supported by new extraction projects in South America and Africa and increased recycling of retired batteries.

The analysis also highlights the growing importance of policy and investment in shaping metals markets, as well as developments in company strategy. Recent interventions in cobalt production in the Democratic Republic of Congo have helped stabilize prices. Major mining companies – including BHP, Anglo American, Rio Tinto and Glencore – have begun to prioritize capital expenditure over shareholder distributions, with explosive copper demand emerging as a central driver in this reorientation.

For the past 30 years, China was able to build its mineral empire by pouring money into securing raw materials from the world’s suppliers, securing access to crucial mines in countries like Australia, Chile, Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and  then systematically building out massive processing capabilities. Through economies of scale, it has become the lowest-cost producer globally. Looking to diversify this concentration in a single region, other countries are now looking to build up their own domestic supply chains.

Decarbonizing metal production is also critical as renewables scale. Steel, aluminium and copper contribute the majority of embodied emissions in wind and solar projects. Operational carbon offsets allow many technologies to achieve payback in just months, but neglecting upstream decarbonization prolongs embedded emissions, underlining the need for a holistic approach that prioritizes both upstream and downstream investment.

Other key findings of the report include:

• Total lithium capacity from both primary and secondary sources could reach 4.4 million tons of lithium carbonate equivalent by 2035, up from 1.5 million metric tons LCE in 2025.
• The manganese market is projected to remain balanced through 2050. Unlike other energy transition commodities, manganese faces no major supply risks concerning reserves or production capacity, though regional policy and logistics constraints may influence short-term availability. Total supply is set to grow by roughly 1% a year between 2025 and 2050, as primary supply utilization rates adjust to meet demand.
• Cobalt prices are likely to remain elevated in 2026 as a result of the DRC’s export ban.
• Iron ore remains the dominant revenue source for most companies analyzed, though exposure has declined with falling prices. Copper has also become another key revenue driver. Its share of BHP revenues rose to 38% in 2024 from 27% in 2020, while Anglo American doubled its exposure to 26% from 13%, making copper its largest contributor. Rio Tinto increased to 16% from 11%, and Zijin held steady at 20%.

It is a special edition of the Beigies Awards where one regional Federal Reserve Bank will receive lifetime achievement recognition. Today on the show, we speak to its President about the value of economic anecdotes.

Related episodes: 
What keeps a Fed president up at night
Using anecdotes to predict recessions

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Tyler Jones. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.  

Interview with Piero Cipollone, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, conducted by Takerou Minami on 26 November 2025

4 December 2025

Why is the digital euro needed in Europe now?

The use of cash is declining because we cannot use it to pay digitally. This clearly limits people’s freedom to pay with central bank money – which currently only exists in the form of physical cash. If we do not complement it with a digital form of cash, we are, in a way, discriminating against central bank money at the retail level.

We are concerned about what would happen in an economy in which there is no access to money issued by the central bank at the retail level. We have not experienced such a situation for a long time. Central bank money is the anchor for the whole financial system, yet we do not currently have a single European solution for every type of digital payment that would allow all Europeans to pay anywhere in the euro area – the only European option that allows you to pay everywhere in the euro area is cash.

In many euro area countries, people have to rely on non-European solutions to pay digitally, notably international card schemes. This means that if people want to buy milk at the supermarket in the morning, they either carry cash or they have to use an international card scheme. This is a big concern for us, because we are responsible for the smooth functioning of the payment system. What if there is a major problem with a payment system that does not come under the euro area’s jurisdiction? We need to make sure that Europeans have one European solution that allows them to pay digitally throughout the euro area. Like cash, but digital.

In what ways could a digital euro strengthen Europe’s unity and autonomy?

Cash was king ten years ago. Euro cash has been a symbol of unity for Europe, but now it risks losing its significance. By combining cash with a digital euro, we would be returning to the world we used to have, where you could pay for anything, anywhere with central bank money. This would reinforce the resilience of the system and, at the same time, our strategic autonomy.

How do you view the historical significance of the digital euro, in light of the changing post-war international order?

It is a natural evolution. We started with cheques, which were later replaced by debit cards, now we have mobile payments and tomorrow, potentially, stablecoins. Following this evolution, it would be absurd if the central bank did not adjust the offering of its main product – money.

The Bank for International Settlements warned about the risks that stablecoins pose to monetary sovereignty and financial stability.

Stablecoins are a new way to mobilise private savings. But they have a unique feature, which is that they represent commodity money rather than credit money. The provision of stablecoins depends on the collateral you have. Because each stablecoin needs to be backed one-to-one by underlying assets, their supply is more rigid than money that is issued by commercial banks. And because the value of the underlying assets might change, stablecoins can be exposed to runs. This could cause financial stability problems.

Some European banks are considering euro-denominated stablecoins.

This is important because euro-denominated stablecoins carry less risk than US dollar-denominated ones. If a stablecoin is denominated in a different currency to that of the country where it is issued, this results in currency substitution and creates risks for monetary sovereignty. Still, euro-denominated stablecoins might be subject to the same risk of a lack of flexibility I was discussing before.

As a central banker, how concerned are you about economic security threats? US President Donald Trump has repeatedly made hostile remarks against the EU.

The digital euro is a strategic project that is deeply rooted in the digital transformation of our economy. The project has its own life and motivations, independent of what is happening outside the eurozone.

What kind of user benefits and use cases do you see?

We aim to address all use cases, which means payments from person to person, in e-commerce, in shops and possibly also from and to the government. What are the benefits for individuals? First, simplicity, because you can cover all your needs with one means of payment. Second, a digital euro would allow people to pay offline even if there is no electricity or internet. This would increase resilience.

The most immediate benefit for merchants would be that their service costs would decline. The fees merchants pay to international credit card schemes increased from 0.27% in 2018 to 0.44% in 2022. With a digital euro, merchants would be in a better position when negotiating with international card schemes.

There are more than 300 million people in the eurozone, but how many of them would you expect to use a digital euro?

That is a very good question. We are working on understanding what the take-up rate would be. The information we have so far is that 66% of those who have an idea of what the digital euro would be say that they would be interested in using it. Of course, this number has to be tested once we launch a campaign explaining what it would be and how exactly it would work. But this is a credible number.

Would travellers from Japan be able to use the digital euro in Italy or Germany?

So far, the legislation foresees that visitors to the euro area, including tourists, would be able to make digital euro payments through European payment service providers.

Will the legislation be in place in time for the potential issuance in 2029?

The European Commission put forward the regulation on the digital euro in June 2023. Two bodies are currently examining it: the Council of the European Union, which represents EU Member States, and the European Parliament. They have to examine this piece of legislation and propose amendments or changes. Then they sit together and come up with the final legislation. The amendment process in the Parliament has just started. We are working on the assumption that the legislation will be adopted in 2026.

How confident are you that the legislation will be in place by 2026?

I am growing more confident by the day. During both the March and the October Euro Summit, we received strong support from the Heads of State, who called this a strategic project for Europe. I see momentum building here, and the EU Council aims to agree its position on the legislation by the end of the year.

The ECB is apparently gathering insights from eurozone countries, including the three Baltic States that border Russia. How do you deal with the threat of cyberattacks?

The Baltic Member States had some important proposals relating to resilience that they brought to the Council Working Party and that have been taken on board. We are reflecting this in the technical design of the digital euro. In terms of specific architecture, we are building a system that uses three different sites, each with multiple servers. The systems work in parallel, so that if one of the sites is down, service is not disrupted.

How would you address money laundering problems?

The approach would not differ much from what we do today. The anti-money laundering checks would be performed by the banks and other payment service providers. Essentially, when you make a payment with the digital euro, you use the app from the ECB or from your bank. Your interaction with the bank would be very much like it is today. That’s where the checks regarding anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism occur.

In terms of privacy, the ECB would see three numbers on the ledger of the digital euro: an encrypted code that represents the payer, the amount paid, and an encrypted code that represents the payee. But the link between the identity of the person and the code would only be known to the bank or payment company, not to the central bank.

So it would be impossible for us to attribute a payment to a specific person, because all we would see is an anonymised code.

What is your view on holding limits?

The digital euro would be a kind of banknote, so any restrictions on digital euro holdings need to be proportionate. However, holding limits would ensure that people do not move excessive amounts of money from their bank account to the digital euro wallet, which could be destabilising for banks. With holding limits, we want to minimise this risk while preserving people’s freedom to use the digital euro. We don’t want to jeopardise financial stability. At the same time, the user experience will be seamless for consumers as they will be able to pay sums higher than the holding limit by linking their digital euro wallet to their commercial bank account.

Would it be acceptable to set the limit at €3,000?

We would reassess all of this when we move closer to actually issuing the digital euro, but a study we published recently showed that with this limit there wouldn’t be any financial stability problems.

Would you consider sharing the technology and the knowledge gained in the digital euro project with other central banks such as the Bank of Japan?

Once we have overcome some problems, this becomes public knowledge. We will be more than happy to share know-how and discuss the technology with the Bank of Japan. More broadly, we are always exploring ways to improve payments together: for example, we are currently working together on a project steered by the Bank for International Settlements, called Agora, which aims to make cross-border payments faster and cheaper. We also work together in many groups at the G7 level, so we regularly share our assessments.

So is it possible to share such knowledge with the Bank of Japan?

It is. If we’re approached, we will be more than willing to interact, discuss and share.

The ECB has kept its deposit facility rate at 2%. Is it appropriate to maintain this rate at the December meeting?

We make decisions meeting by meeting, and they’re based on the information we have. Compared with the last Governing Council, it seems to me that risks around the central projection are more balanced. You may remember there was some concern that the economy could do worse than projected in the main scenario. But the economy has been resilient.

In our September projection, we expected inflation to be below target in 2026 and 2027. As you know, for us it is key that we go back to target in the medium term. The December projections will extend our forecasting horizon to 2028. But risks around inflation seem balanced and our central scenario seems more and more credible. So for the time being – as the President has said several times – we are in a good place. And we stand ready to react to any shock.

Is it premature to declare an end to rate cuts?

There are still many risks in the pipeline. For example, we haven’t seen the full effect of tariffs on the European economy. We know that there is pressure on the import side from the Chinese goods that are being redirected from the United States to Europe. The financial boost coming from higher expenditure, especially in Germany, might not manifest itself with the intensity that we are expecting. For the recovery of consumption, we are assuming that the savings rate will go down, but this assumption has yet to be tested. If it doesn’t materialise, we will need to act.

The Japanese yen has slumped to a new record low against the euro. The Japanese Government may decide to intervene in the foreign exchange market to support the weak yen. Would that be acceptable from the ECB’s point of view?

The G7 communiqué on exchange rates uses very clear language. It says, among other things, that we are committed to “market determined exchange rates,” to “consult closely in regard to actions in foreign exchange markets” and that “we will not target exchange rates for competitive purposes.” We will stick to that.