In Belem, the Brazilian city hosting COP30, it's hard to miss the BYD Dolphin Mini -- the Chinese hatchback that's dominating the local electric vehicle market, even as the company races to catch up in Europe and is absent in North America.

Trade-restrictive measures loom large over this year's UN climate summit, with China pushing for wider market access for its green technologies and major developing economies challenging Europe over its new carbon border tax on carbon-intensive imports like steel and fertilizer.

Even smaller developing countries whose exports aren't targeted by Europe's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) fear broader measures to come.

"Trade, at this COP, unlike previous COPs, has already been elevated," Li Shuo, director of the China Climate Hub at the Asia S

See Full Page