Daily Update — Decemeber 18, 2025
Canceled Net-Zero Targets; AI Bubble Trouble; and Opportunistic Credit
Today is Thursday, December 18, 2025, and here’s your curated selection of Essential Intelligence on global markets from S&P Global. Subscribe to be notified of each new Daily Update.
Energy Transition & Sustainability
Finnish refiner Neste defers net-zero targets
Neste, the world's leading biofuels producer, abandoned plans to become carbon neutral by 2035, calling the goal financially untenable. Reaching ambitious net-zero deadlines requires "significant investments that are currently not realistic," the company said Dec. 15, noting that initial time frames relied on plans to phase out crude oil at its Porvoo facility. These have since been delayed.
The Finnish refiner is now targeting a 2040 deadline to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 80% relative to 2019 levels. An interim target to halve Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030 was delayed to 2035, the company said.
Artificial Intelligence
Bubble Trouble?: Lessons from the Dot-Com Era
Amid recent speculation that an AI bubble is building and will burst, wreaking havoc on the global economy, S&P Global Market Intelligence highlighted some key differences between the circumstances of previous bubbles and the current situation. Some are favorable, others less so.
S&P Global Market Intelligence looked at the deterioration in economic conditions following the corrections in equity markets — referred to as the “dot-com correction” — highlighting variations across countries, regions and types of expenditure. We also put the effects into perspective by comparing them with the fallout from the global financial crisis that began in 2007.
Private Markets
Listen: Capitalizing on Chaos — Canyon’s Opportunistic Credit Playbook
In this episode of the “Private Markets 360°” podcast, Chaney Sheffield and Jonathan Barzideh, co-heads of opportunistic credit at alternative investment manager Canyon Partners, joined hosts Christina McNamara and Jocelyn Lewis to discuss the fundamentals of this asset class and how it is creating new avenues for investors.
In case you missed it
- Russia's wheat production is forecast to decline slightly in the 2026–27 marketing year (July–June) as farmers shift toward more profitable oilseed crops, potentially tightening global grain supplies and reshaping Black Sea export flows despite continued strong shipment volumes from the region.
- European low-carbon cement provider Ecocem called the publication of a new European Assessment Document on blended cements a major milestone for the commercialization of low-carbon cements in Europe.
- S&P Global Market Intelligence’s new podcast, “Data & Dimensions,” explores the transition of the internet into immersive 3D virtual spaces, delving into the multifaceted implications of the metaverse for industry, enterprises, consumers and society.
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- Structured Finance U.S. and Canada 2026 Outlook | January 15 (Webinar)
- 2026 U.S. Technology Industry Credit Outlook | January 27 (Webinar)
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