Big nations must stretch further to limit climate change - U.S. envoy Kerry

Milan: The world's major economies must "stretch to do more" at next month's U.N. climate talks to show they are serious about wanting to tackle global warming, U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry said on Saturday.

The COP26 conference in Glasgow aims to secure more ambitious climate action from the nearly 200 countries that signed the 2015 Paris Agreement to limit global warming to well below 2.0 degrees Celsius - and to 1.5 degrees preferably - above pre-industrial levels.

"We now have about 55% of global GDP (gross domestic product) committed to undertake tracks that will hold the temperature to 1.5 degrees. There are other countries now sharpening their pencils," Kerry said during a pre-COP26 meeting in Milan, Italy.