In brief | 21 October ‘25

FT: Europe’s green steel hope Stegra races to avoid fate of sister group Northvolt

Investors and creditors grow twitchy as Swedish start-up scrambles to resolve worsening funding crisis.

FT: EU to exempt small farmers from deforestation law

Revisions to law, whose implementation has been delayed, come after pressure from trading partners such as Indonesia.

Euronews: ‘Leaving the world’s poorest behind’: Nearly 900 million poor people face climate shocks, says UN

For the first time, researchers have overlaid global climate hazard data with multidimensional poverty indicators, revealing that poverty is not just an economic issue but one “deeply interlinked with planetary pressures and instability.”

Reuters: Goldman Sachs flags risk of disruption in supply of rare earths, key minerals

Goldman Sachs flagged mounting risks to global supply chains of rare earths and other critical minerals, emphasising China's dominance in mining and refining, and outlining challenges for nations seeking to build independent supply chains.

S-Curve Economics: First build then break. A policy framework for accelerating zero carbon transitions

The report provides two overarching principles for transition policy. First: First build the new zero-carbon technology systems, then break the old polluting ones. Second: Match the policy to the stage of transition.