Stock Take

Landmark Cop 28 deal has not worried the markets – and that should worry us

The agreement has been hailed as a great step forward – but shares in the world’s biggest oil companies have gone up since the announcement, revealing that fossil-fuel investors see business as usual

When markets opened last Thursday morning, shares in the world’s biggest oil companies rallied as fossil fuel investors concluded the deal held little threat to their business models

Last’s week’s agreement at the Cop 28 climate summit in Dubai has been hailed by many as a historic and landmark deal that will finally set the world on a course to end its addiction to polluting fossil fuels.

In short, the Cop28 deal calls for greater action “in this critical decade” and states that all countries are committed to “transitioning away from fossil fuels in their energy systems, in a just, orderly and equitable ...