UPDATE: Prices and volumes soften as traders take stock over holiday period

Volumes and prices of spot Australian Carbon credit Units (ACCUs) came off last week, with the Australia Day holiday and Chinese New Year leading to more muted activity. After rapid gains across methodologies and delivery timeframes over the past two weeks, market participants showed more restraint, with prices falling slightly in key categories on low volumes amid some profit-taking. International voluntary offsets saw a continuation of the current bear market with low traded activity and a growing oversupply in the VCM as investors and market participants weigh reputational risks arising from recent negative publicity around the REDD+ standard, and renewed discussion of the benefit of avoidance versus removals projects.

This report analyses current activity in the Australian and international voluntary carbon markets, including spot and forward price dynamics, and prices by underlying project methodologies. Analysis considers Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) and voluntary offsets across key international registries including Verra, Gold Standard, the American Carbon Registry, and the Climate Action Reserve.

HIR and Generic down, SFM up on smaller volumes

Both spot Generic and HIR ACCU prices fell $0.50 over the course of the week on the back of weaker demand during the holiday week. On Tuesday 24^th,