China: Growth trumps green

Bloomberg reported today that,

China may be letting “green” goals fall by the wayside as it trims spending on energy and emission – reduction projects in a 4 trillion yuan ($585 billion) economic stimulus plan, two environmental groups said.

The decision to cut environmental funding by 40 percent in the economic-aid package is “worrying,” officials of Friends of Nature and Greenpeace China said in interviews, calling on the government to clarify its objectives.

The Greens say that China should be more like the U.S. where,

… President Barack Obama has pledged to spend $150 billion over 10 years to combat climate change and create “green” jobs.

It’s too early to know how things will turn out, but investor Marc Faber told Bloomberg that China is the world’s best-performing stock market this year.