flags other countries about 5 percent of new car sales compared to 80 percent in norway. but with government incentives that is changing. california aims to ban sales of new carbon based cars and light trucks. by 2035 electric vehicles are becoming more and more mainstream and manufacturers say in the coming years, there'll be a wider variety of styles and prices. as the new models roll out, the old ones are getting phased dec dodge is offering its last call on 7 models, including its petrol powered challenger and charger muscle cars to be replaced by electric versions. one more sign that the future is electric. john henderson, al jazeera chicago. ah, hello again. i'm elizabeth toronto mendoza. how, but the headlines on al jazeera, it's been 6 days since a powerful earthquake had takia and sylvia, more than 24000 people have been killed. survivors are now harmless,

facing harsh when to temperatures. basis had that has more from the epicenter, caught him on my dash. no im just the front of one of the collapse blogs. so this is just one of hundreds in this city you will see blocks off the blog. apartments off the apartments are leveled. dom fucked. seas are so much widespread across the city, particularly the city center. or this, of course i'm on my dash is mostly destroyed, caught them on what i was regarded as one of the most delicate cities of turkey. and recently i have been here the city that i see now is completely different than the one i have seen recently. and serious now facing both destruction from the earthquakes and as years long civil war, the u. s. has more than 5300000 people, the now homeless as a result of one day's earthquakes. in other news, you as a fighter jets have shopped down

a high altitude object of the small town of dead horse and ne, in alaska. the pentagon says it poses a threat to flight safety. it comes 6 days after it shot down the chinese balloon over the united states. rose president has called for an all party meeting to solve the country's political crisis. the congress has rejected the la boulevard. there's proposal to hold early elections. public anger has been growing since december when pedro castillo with als to this president, asked, trying to dissolve congress 59 people have died and months of unrest in the democratic republic of congo fighting has been going on near the eastern town of saki, around 15 kilometers. west of the regional capital goma. it comes a day after m $23.00 fighters interest closer to saki, prompting thousands to flee their homes. and cy clone gabrielle is closing in on museums, largest city, which is still recovering from devastating flooding. the category to cyclone is heading towards oakland where just 2 weeks ago,

4 people were killed. strong wound and heavy rain warnings are in place and emergency shelters have been set up. well, those are the headlines on al jazeera counting. the cost is coming up next. what happens in new york has implications all around the world. it's the home of the united nations. it's a center of international finance, international culture to make these stories resonate requires talking to everyday people to normal people, not just power brokers, and that's where al jazeera is different. the mayor of the city announced that he was doing the way with the curfew. that was supposed to get everybody off. it's international perspective with the human touch zooming way in, and then pulling back out again with

hello, i'm molly inside of this is counting the cost on al jazeera, your look at the well to business and economics. this week, the race, the green subsidies is accelerating. the new house set out a plan to boost the production off, electric cause and renewable energy projects. the count on the block keep up with the u. s. in china. also this week, brazil's president is loosening the past strings and he's threatened the central bags autonomy, demanding lower interest rates, will lead to silva's economic plan work. los hong kong is facing its highest rates of homelessness in a decade with straw, how one n g o is helping people sleeping in tunnel the on the street to find shelter. ah, the national energy agency estimates the global market, the mass produced clean energy will triple to around $650000000000.00 a year by the year 2030. now the world's biggest economy is one

a slice of that growing industry. the united states recently announced the inflation reduction act. this includes billions of dollars in grounds and loans to boost financing and deployment of new clean energy projects. but it sparked a trade dispute with its allies in europe. and now the e. u has set up its own plan to compete with the us as a production of the green products. it includes redeploying more than $270000000000.00 remaining from the ease pandemic recovery fund. european commission has also suggested relaxing state aid rules to allow governments to pump cash into green industries, implants to make approvals for green projects, foster and c will trade agreements to secure supplies of critical rule materials that he also wants to create a european sovereignty fun to invest in emerging technologies. so why is europe

so threatened by america's inflation reduction acts? well, they fear that the i r 8th, $369000000000.00 of subsidies for electric vehicles and all the clean technologies could put companies based in europe at a disadvantage. for example, many of the tax breaks only applicable for products manufactured in north america, which could of course, in cars, european firms to ship production to the u. s. on the plan also provides tax credits to consumers who buy electric cars made in the u. s. which could again make european made electric vehicles less attractive to bias. but even with the biggest ever climate bill, the u. s. lived behind china as green spending last year. the energy research group, bloomberg any f says almost half of all global energy transition investments were $546000000000.00. while in china, they use as chinese subsidies have been twice as high as those in the block

relative to g d, p. the u, as a single entity came 2nd at a $180000000000.00. while the us spent a $141000000000.00 from brussels, i'm joined now by milan elk about milan as a research fellow in head of the climate policy program at the center for european policy studies in brussel. thank you for joining the program. is the right to be threatened by the u. s. is inflation reduction act? well, yes and no. on the one hand, be inflation reduction, acts of a very general subsidies and the subsidies are combined with some other measures related to the components that need to be used in the production all spoken goods. and these are really a challenge to european industry. but on the other hand, no, because the inflation reduction acts still really as overwhelmingly

a good thing. it is the 1st time that the u. s. pastor, they a comprehensive federal climate policy, which for the 1st time also target the greenhouse gas emissions coming from the industry and all these investments that the subsidies promote will lead to increased economies of scale and deaf, also lower costs for low carbon technologies. and that is really a good thing for all countries around the world. until now, industrial policy in the u has been restrained by very tough competition laws in order for them to have their own green tex pledge europe is going to have to change that. how tricky is that going to be for them? this is indeed a very important but difficult issue. what we should keep in mind is that these competition rules called state rules have been in place for a very long time. it actually goes back to the late 19 fifties, really the beginning of european integration, but then they have been also

a lot more relax since the beginning of the mac. and the reason why was because due to all the last dance really extensive support to businesses to close was necessary anyway. and it's relaxed, the rules are still in place today. now there is a risk death if we keep those rules very relaxed that we get a subsidy risk between them. and that's the very best thing within the european single market. so that definitely have some interest from european policymakers also to make sure that we still have some degree of competition rules between the member states. but of course, they should not be so strict that the countries and the u as a whole cannot respond to this challenge. coming from the us. so what do you make of the use green proposals? it has quite a few components. it's really not just only about subsidy,

but also really look at what the bottlenecks that exists today that can slow down the role of, of clean technologies. and there are some things be on subsidies that are very important. one of those, this label, market skills in the labor markets and a lot of european countries are very tight that moment. another very important thing relates to permitting renewables in particular are very economically competitive. already costs have come down enormously. so it's not really a question about money, but you can have all sorts of rules by local authority for people who would not like to see when turbines in the neighborhood. and that can slow down the role of technology as well. for foster permitting is also part of it. that's a good thing really, when it comes to the subsidies europe has for

a long time already supportive industry quite extensively, but it has done so in a very different way from the us. because the us, well a saint or country with a single fiscal policy. so it can really provide money very directly in the you, it's much more dispersed across different programs. and one of the most difficult things about the european of folks is that we have a lot of administrative processes, certain outcomes for companies. the strength of the us approach is that companies know exactly how much money will be able to get out of the inflation reduction act . so one part of the european response is also really about simplifying the rules. i'm making them more and more, but if that is a very good thing, it's interesting that you mentioned that point, that it's not just about spending, because when you look at the numbers,

the u. s. to spending almost $370000000000.00 on subsidies, china subsidies are double that of europe. so how do you see europe competing with the u. s. in china when it comes to the green economy? to start with, maybe if we look at this number of the us, the 370000000000 us dollar been reported very extensively. it's a staggering some in some way, but it's also for the 10 year period. so as a percentage of the u. s. g t p is all not that much. and a lot of this money is also for things like renewables or transport emissions reductions where europe really has some very serious and successful policy for the last 10 to 20 years already. so part of the american money is also for catching up to europe. then another 6070000000000 will

really be about industry. and this is where most of the discussion is euro in europe as a box, because the industrial sectors are about traded goods. and this is where the competition can really play a role in europe has also supported industrial innovation quite a bit over the last decade. but it has really focused on the early stage innovation, basically research and development. what the u. s. is doing now is providing direct funding for, for production and for investment. and that is something that we in europe do not have yes. and what we need to address in the future so that there are, yeah, clear incentives. invest the technologies that are still more expensive. a funny, how do you see consumers benefiting from all this,

from the subsidy race and the investments going on around the world in the green energy front. and then ultimately over the long term, as we have seen already with renewable such as the the, or on shore. and i feel wind. if you increase the scale of production in a certain technology and a certain product, the costs tend to come down. it's not a rule that will always apply, but in most cases, if you can increase the skill, then things will become more affordable and that is a good fit for the company was around the world. milan really interesting to talk to you about the subject milan, about from the center, the european policy studies in brussel. thank you. iraq has re valued its currency as policy beneatha to stabilize the foreign exchange market . the cabinet has approved the decision to set the exchange rate at $1300.00 dina's

per us dollar. now the rocky dina had been selling at 1470 dina was against the greenback before the us introduce tighter controls on transactions by commercial iraqi banks. mood after what he has more from back that prices are going golf heaney, rockies tours. since mid november, the denado has declined against u. s. dollar. losing about 10 percent of its value. a bought on it says he double, it checks the price tags every time he comes to the supermarket, i'm present in there. i will madigan let us do it. alpha shopper and his blame it on the dollar exchange rate because most of the products are imported. in this case, the government should pay our salaries in dollars mod. since november, the u. s. has tightened the rules on international transfers to prevent money laundering. it's reduced cash flows to iraqi banks by about 80 percent. lou are the

100 for guided entity key. it's cleared u. s. federal reserve scrutinizing foreign transfers from iraq. and especially to those countries unfriendly with 2 u. s. army, such as iran, lebanon, by syria, and yemen. others, consequently, iraq steel via transfers from the u. s. have been cut from $240000000.00 to only $22000000.00. on a day. the government has launched a campaign to combat illegal currency trading and promised to hold further discussions with washington to stabilize the exchange rate will hardly charges one . this is one aspect of an economic challenge that requires a brave response and practical solutions to end the wrong financial policies inherited by the current government. in the mean time, the prime minister has extended credit to small businesses by half a $1000000000.00. despite government promises to continue the depreciation, many iraqis are worried about an increase in prices ahead of the holy month of ramadan. especially in imports such as gas and wheat,

a number of currency exchanges have stopped trading anthony. that is more certainty about trees. some of the rockies blame the central bank for the shortage of dollars . others accused the united states of were promising the dollar. either way, it's the iraqi people will be to the brand of the changes. brazil is the world's largest exporter of beef and the 2nd largest exporter of grain. yet tens of millions of brazilians are not getting enough to eat. the nations president made it clear that his government priority is reducing the number of hungry people. louise in acilo da silva has boosted spending for social welfare programs, but investors are worried that the measure could make brazil's debt more unsustainable an effect it's fiscal credibility. congress has suspended the government's spending cap to allow lunar da silva to raise spending by an extra

$28000000000.00 on social welfare and public works this year. the approval is a political victory for lula who started his 3rd term in january. the markets have tanked after the budget was passed, the nation's finance minister announced to plan to more than half the government's deficit this year in an attempt to lay invested concerns. meanwhile, brazil central bank plans to keep interest rates at a 6 year high for longer than expected period. and as warned fiscal risks on the lula to silver says the current inflation target slows economic growth. and he threatened the central bags, independence, the chief of the central bank in 5th, the institution plans to act independently, adding that it's so tommy gives the capacity to stabilize markets from mulligan, spain. i'm joined now by mariano machado. he is a principal analyst of the americas at global risk, various maple cross. thank you for joining the program. why all the government and

the central bank in brazil at loggerheads when it comes to brazil's economy? thank you for having us today. and that's actually the $1000000.00 question i did happening with other countries and in the world monetary authorities decisions. this is the central banks and government positions regards to spending our have created tensions all across the world. in brazil has been no exception to this. just recently, the, the row between the central bank president compass net, the president of the country, the silver has reached new heights. but despite technical discussions around interest, rayden and measures detain inflation. there's also seems to be a political background. we tend to believe that this is because compass net though the central bank president has been nominated by the previous administration, the jade or sonata ministry. and there is reason to believe that there is a degree of mistrust between the both of them. so basically we expect this tensions

to last a bit longer. live is actually threatened. the autonomy of the central bank has any, i mean how, how far would he go with that? and how important is it to brazil that the central bank remain independent? that's an excellent question. and actually where c lula barking, if you will, a lot. but the ability to bite it's, it's the real question here. so in terms of the independence of the central bank, in general data from the world bank and other research sources show that an independent central bank, it's that it's is actually an extremely useful asset in terms of rain in inflation and provide him monetary and polish a certainty ahead in the case of brazil, this independence in particular was passed just recently in 2021 a couple of years ago that our boy encompassed ned to was nominated. at this point, we believe that the next stage of this potential escalation between the 2 actors could be ah, the upcoming nominations for some members of the directorate of the central bank.

depending on who lays able to nominate to those places. we will understand how this relationship michael forward, but all in all one things for certain campos, no thought air can only be removed by conks and cont, congress has a choose for independence, so it will be a tough battlefield road led to handle. yeah, it's interesting because the last time lila was in power, he didn't even have the central bank and to deal with it. so he, he's used some strong words at when it's when he's come to the central bank. he says there's no justification for the interest rate being at the current rate of $13.00. he says it's shameful and that there should be other tools used to fight inflation. do you think he's justified in those comments? i think the lunar has a top concern and our top concern is basically keepin the economy war. you cannot govern with an economy that is cool enough. and basically that could be the situation in brazil showing some of the highest interest rate net interest rate in the world perhaps. but in the end,

are the true question is if the potential other ways to rain in inflation or at some degree useful for law allows. well just to recap, you can think about, ah, a new fiscal plan to be presented to, to investment, to society. that is expected to happen in a couple of months. that was the announcement on behalf of the government. but laura knows that he cannot rule. i cannot governor an empty wallet. so was simply to see the fine print of that blunt and full. if you can think of something that is also useful in terms of vein in inflation beyond interest rates, good b r. a much expected along a way to tax reform. but that bending homework has been a phone on the side of every single administration in brazil for the best part of the, of the last 3 decades, including last 2 previous administrations. and generally, when you look at the markets, investors don't seem to be convinced at all about louis plans. there's not amount of political will that can make, ah, one plus one equals 3. so basically, yes,

there is, we are sienna. ah, if you want to call it a crisis self expectations between the testers, at least for the moment, local investors in the gaze of brazil and the government in terms of what's going to be the policy direction. recap in on a thing that i just mentioned when you have a central bank authority that has been nominated as independent and with a tenure that doesn't coincide, the stint doesn't coincide with the presidency. you face this risks, you faced, the risk of you can call a quotation, we in simpler terms, it would be having a, ah, less strict government in terms of fiscal and spend the measures and a, perhaps more strict sense for bunk authority. and this is the 1st time in brazil in which we are witnessing how policies be made with this 2 pillars interact and encounter interacting with each other. how much of a concern is the ad, brazil's debt situation, especially in line of new las plans when it comes to spending the seals?

death situation has been a issue of concern for a long time. now, this is not new to lula latest said. if analysis said that by 2025 bristles overall, our external death to g d p ratio could reach some one along the lines of 108 per cent of g b. so that's a, a backbone concern that has been persistent and so far, no solution has been found. in this particular case, we tend to believe that lou days focusing on much more on, on the ground type of concerns. this is again, keeping the economy running to assured that he can deliver what he was elected for . he was voted for happier times and he needs to make sure he delivers to a degree happier times. and well, part of the reason he delivered happier times previously was because brazil had that commodity boehme in 2000 and t. this time that the circumstances are very different. given that do you think he can deliver?

is he aware of the challenges that he is facing? indeed it's a completely different setting for the last 3 bowling though, as we call it, a completely different from his to previous presidential incarnations. and we're all really, if, if the region serves as an example, we're already seeing other ah, left leaning governments in the region such as argentina, sheila, to a degree even columbia with gustavo better recently elected last year. ah, struggling exactly with the same dilemma riding to office with abundant promises of deliver in economic prosperity. nonetheless, finding a completely different set in, in terms of governance, we're seeing weaker governance with inability to just steam roll. there are policy priorities. and on the external side, we're seeing a much shake your geopolitical context that doesn't allow for this promises to be a bank rolled in the way that they're used to be. ah, the inner circle of lula is very much aware of this. so one month and change into

his 3rd presidency, we believe that we're still seeing different elements in the coalition accommodating traditional reality. and perhaps that we have more clarity on the backend of this year. marianna met machado, really get to talk to you, mariano. our principal analyst of the americas and global risk v risk map across. thank you for your time. a pleasure. hong kong is facing the highest rate of homelessness in a decade. it's one of the most expensive cities to live in and rising. inflation has sent the cost of everything from food to rent. soaring. jessica washington met some of the people in hong kong, forced to make the street their home. this is the image of hong kong that dazzles visitors, a bustling, glamorous city, but under ground a different reality appears. oh. busy there are many mosquitoes and bed bugs here. you see so many on getting fungal infections. he has slept here for 4 years and

looks to rubbish bins for left over food. in takeaway boxes, official figures released in november show the number of people experiencing homelessness. is the highest in a decade, and there's a sharp rise in the number if women experiencing housing insecurity. that report also said there's need for better services and more funds for hostile accommodation . as the situation worsens. this is a very wealthy city. you know, it's, it's extremely wealthy with one and 5 at this moment, are having food and security, the cannot afford 3 meals a day. you know it's, it's an amazing city where you see the haves and the have nots and in your face all the time impact h. k is an n g o. founded in 2017. so far they've helped around 500 people find shelter. they also welcome people into their community centers for hot meals and fresh clothes over 90 percent of those individuals have no emergency contacts. they have no friend or found, or a member in their life. in the isolation plays

a huge role in their, you know, step towards becoming homeless. he says, emergency shelter is provided by the government. don't address the needs of the city and a difficult for people to access. the hong kong government told down to 0 social workers give assistance to those willing to accept services. in tyco china, there are more than 30 people sharing this underground space. it's the middle of winter here in hong kong, and the temperature often drops below 10 degrees at night. people in this underpass of repairing for another night exposed to freezing conditions. alec used to be one of them. he spent almost 20 years on the streets. yeah, yeah, i know how i have a place to live. i have food to eat and a job. i'm happier, more cheerful now. now he works in the community center, distributing food and essentials to people sleeping outside, helping them through the same dark days he experienced during his time on the streets. that is our site for this week. get in touch with us by twisting may at

mullin, site and do use the hash tag a j c c c. when he j, or drop us an e mail counter, the cost at al jazeera dot net east, our address that mo, for you online to out, is there a dot com slash ctc. that'll take you straight to our page, which as individual ports links an entire episodes for you to catch up on that is it for this edition of counting the cost. i mullins, i even the whole team. thanks for joining us. the news on al jazeera is next. ah ah.

those fools inter marines rivers gum on england street. plastic is everywhere. but if fossils can be fishing boats. a bubble gum. wellington boots. what little can be done with this plague of polymers? earth rise, re imagining plastic on al jazeera. ah ah, hello, emerald marcus and this is the news our live from dough. hard coming up in the next 60 minutes. ah.