What's going on?

COP26 � a United Nations climate meeting with more than 100 world leaders in attendance � kicked off in the UK this weekend.

What does this mean?

The 2015 Paris Agreement saw 196 countries agree to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5�C above pre-industrial levels, but most of their plans aren�t ambitious enough to achieve that aim. And even if they are, members still haven�t been meeting the targets quickly enough to halve emissions by 2030 and reach net-zero emissions by 2050. Cue COP26: a summit devoted to putting solid pledges in place and getting the whole process back on track. There could be any number of ways countries decide to do that, but expect a lot of talk about investment in renewable infrastructure, incentives to promote greener habits, and disincentives to limit the use of fossil fuels.

Why should I care?

For markets: The winners and losers of COP26.
It�ll come as no shock to hear that investors are expecting renewable energy companies and energy storage firms to benefit from countries� COP26-inspired investments. In fact, the market for wind turbines, solar panels, batteries, and hydrogen energy technology could hit $27 trillion if the world gets on track for net-zero by 2050, according to the International Energy Agency. As for the potential losers, high emission sectors � airlines, shipping, chemical producers, and oil companies � are all set to be in the firing line from stricter regulations.

Zooming out: Aramco�s full of hot air.
Saudi Aramco isn�t going to take this sitting down: the world�s biggest oil company � which reported better-than-expected quarterly profit over the weekend � announced plans to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 last week (tweet this). But if you�re skeptical, you�re right to be: Aramco has previously laid out plans to up its daily oil production by more than 8% by 2027, even as its rivals have promised to cut theirs.