A report released by the United Nations Environment Programme says that China has become a green economy giant in Asia and is leading the region's alternative energy investment trend.
According to the report, Global Trends in Sustainable Energy Investment 2009, China invested more than USD15.6 billion on green energy in 2008, which was an increase of 18% over 2007. Wind power and biofuel were the most active items to receive investment in China. The report says that China has become the world's second largest wind power market and the world's biggest photovoltaic manufacturer.
The report shows that despite the worsening clean energy financing environment caused by the global financial crisis, investment on clean energy broke a new record in 2008 driven by such emerging economies as China and Brazil.
The report states that developing countries are becoming promising economies for new energy investment. Their investment in new energy in 2008 accounted for one third of the global total investment
The report predicts that as the most mature and reliable alternative energy source, wind power will continue to be popular among investors in 2009. In addition, with the decline of price of silicon materials, financing on solar power will rise by 71% in 2009.