Carbon traders will today find out whether the European Union's emissions trading scheme has succeeded in persuading companies to curb their greenhouse gas output. The European Commission is expected to release data today showing the extent of carbon dioxide emissions in 2007 from businesses covered by its emissions trading scheme. It is widely expected to show that emissions from heavy industry such as steel and cement making have fallen by a small amount, but that emissions from the power sector have risen slightly. There is unlikely to be evidence of strong emissions cuts, as companies were awarded too many emissions permits under the first phase of the scheme, from 2005 to the end of 2007, giving them little incentive to cut their emissions. But Henrik Hasselknippe, director of EU emissions trading analysis at Point Carbon, an independent consultancy, said the new data would show whether companies took action to cut emissions in the expectation of receiving a smaller allocation of permits in the second phase of the scheme, from 2008 to 2012. The over-allocation of permits resulted in a crash in the price of carbon from more than