"China spent more than the U.S. on energy efficiency for the first time with the $4.3 billion it invested accounting for almost a third of the world’s total."

"Global spending rose almost 5 percent to $14.9 billion, figures issued today by Bloomberg New Energy Finance show. North American investment slid as much as 33 percent to $3.6 billion.

“Asian and European markets will drive growth through 2020, while in North America the focus will continue to shift from hardware to software as utilities look to squeeze additional value out of the vast amounts of grid data now available,” Colin McKerracher, a senior analyst on smart technologies for energy at BNEF, said in the statement."

Louise Downing reports for Bloomberg News February 18, 2014. [2]