China

The Tokyo Stock Exchange’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rebounded to close up 5.7% Wednesday, as hedge funds rushed to cover short positions after the worst two-day fall since the great crash of 1987. Western markets were down today as they learned that a second reactor unit at the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant may have ruptured and vented radioactive steam.

With some analysts estimating the global cleantech market to hit $2 trillion by 2030, one has to wonder which countries are the big players. Shawn Lesser of Sustainable World Capital explains who they are and why--and some might come as a surprise.

Xinsheng Zheng, a chemist at the College of Science, Hua Zhong Agriculture University in Wuhan, China, says that he and his colleagues have developed a catalyst made from shrimp shells that can be used in the production of biodiesel, making the biodiesel process fa