China’s emissions were down 1.6 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025 and by 1 per cent in the latest 12 months, according to Myllyvirta’s analysis of new economic and climate data. China’s rapid deployment of electricity supply from new wind and solar infrastructure as well as hydro and nuclear, alongside its efforts to electrify its economy – particularly through the rapid roll-out of electric vehicles – has displaced coal and oil use and thereby cut emissions. Crucially, it had done so as its energy demand increased. This is what makes the data so remarkable.
