International Bank HSBC Projects $2 Trillion Revenue per Year by 2020 for Low-Carbon Sector

Global banking giant HSBC said last week that total revenue associated with low-carbon products and services may top $2 trillion annually by 2020.

In 2006 the Stern Report, commissioned by the UK government, projected low-carbon goods and services would generate $500 billion by 2050.

Joaquim de Lima, global head of quant research for equities, said, "We can see that this seemingly huge figure has already been surpassed well ahead of time as more and more businesses adapt their business model."

According to Reuters ("World Climate Business Revenue $2 Trillion by 2020: HSBC," Sept. 18, 2009), "The climate sector has surpassed the size of the global aerospace or defense industry, with the United States, Japan, France, Germany, and Spain accounting for 76 percent of global climate revenues, the report found."