COP31 opens with record global emissions

World leaders have gathered in Antalya, Turkiye, for the United Nations COP31 climate summit. The session runs from November 9 to November 20, 2026. Delegates arrive as new data confirms a rise in global greenhouse gas emissions. The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre and the International Energy Agency report 2025 emissions at 54.1 billion tonnes. This figure represents a 0.7 percent increase from the previous year. It also stands 68.5 percent above levels recorded in 1990.

Three nations drive nearly half of the total output. China leads with 29.5 percent of the world’s emissions, equal to almost 16 billion tonnes. The United States follows with 6.02 billion tonnes, or 11.1 percent. India accounts for 4.51 billion tonnes, representing 8.3 percent. The European Union’s 27 member states contribute a combined 5.8 percent. Russia adds 4.8 percent, while Indonesia, Brazil, and Iran contribute 2.5, 2.4, and 2.1 percent respectively.

Electricity generation remains the largest single source of global emissions. It accounted for nearly 30 percent of the total in 2025. Emissions from the power industry have roughly quadrupled since 1970. This growth tracks the expansion of electricity demand in fast-growing economies like China and India. Manufacturing, mining, and other industrial activity contributed 21 percent. Transport ranked third at 16 percent. Together, power, industry, and transport produce about two-thirds of global emissions.

The source of emissions varies by country. In China, power generation produced 42 percent of greenhouse gases. Industry added 31 percent, and fuel production added 9.5 percent. The United States saw transport lead with 29 percent, driven largely by cars and trucks. Electricity generation contributed 26 percent, and industry 14 percent. India’s power sector accounted for 35 percent of its national total. Industry contributed 24 percent, and agriculture 19 percent.

Carbon dioxide comprised 73.8 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in 2025. It originates mainly from burning coal, oil, and gas. Deforestation reduces the number of trees available to absorb this gas. Methane contributed 17.6 percent, nitrous oxide 5.3 percent, and fluorinated gases 3.3 percent. The Joint Research Centre notes that global carbon dioxide emissions have increased by 76.3 percent since 1990.

The World Meteorological Organization reports that ocean heat reached a record in 2025. Warming has accelerated sharply over the past two decades. Extreme weather events killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions in 2026. Historical data shows a different ranking than annual totals. The United States has contributed 23.5 percent of cumulative carbon dioxide emissions since the mid-18th century. China’s cumulative share is 15.4 percent, despite overtaking the US as the largest annual emitter in the mid-2000s.

Global emissions more than doubled from about 23 billion tonnes in 1970. Previous declines after the 2008 financial crisis and during the 2020 pandemic were followed by rebounds. In September 2025, Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged to reduce China’s emissions by 7 to 10 percent from their peak by 2035. This marks the first such reduction target for the country.