The wave of optimism that recently lifted the European carbon market to its highest in nine months  appears to have eased last week, as prices for Dec’25 contracts slipped in four of the five trading sessions, suggesting a cooling of momentum.

On Friday, EUAs surrendered a portion of the gains made during Thursday’s session, closing at €81.98. This pullback not only represented a daily reversal but also contributed to a weekly drop of 1.53%,  the steepest decline seen since September.

Market activity slowed down as well, with only 173.1 million allowances traded over the week. Although volumes still exceeded the year-to-date average, turnover was nearly 22% lower than the previous week’s impressive total of 224 million allowances.

“But volatility could return to the market soon enough as the upcoming options expiry is the next point of interest on the market ahead of the Christmas holiday,” warns Mind Energy in its morning report on Monday. Data shows that considerable calls are concentrated in the €80-90 range while puts are concentrated in the €70-75 range.

Besides the volatility typically seen ahead of options expiry in two days, additional market fluctuations are expected as the EUA Dec ’25 contract approaches its maturity on December 15 and speculative investors move to secure profits before year-end.