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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Southern Oregon Surgery Center burglary suspect ID'd ... Rogue River offers guided tour through Palmerton Park Arboretum ... Sanctuary One will hold Free Farm Tour Day ... Southern Oregon Surgery Center burglary suspect ID'd ... Rogue River offers guided tour through Palmerton Park Arboretum ... Sanctuary One will hold Free Farm Tour Day ... What Wall Street thinks about how Obama wants to tackle climate change Comment By Linette Lopez MailTribune.com By Linette Lopez Posted Aug. 3, 2015 at 1:30 PM By Linette Lopez Posted Aug. 3, 2015 at 1:30 PM » Social News President Obama announced a major plan to tackle climate change on Monday. It involves carbon emission reductions and incentive programs for states to invest in renewable energy sources, like solar energy. The message from Wall Street is that it is a bright idea, but that it c ouldn't be coming at a stranger time for the energy industry and commodity markets. "I think it's interesting if you think about what's going on in commodities today. T he irony is that as commodity pries are going down people are going to care less about renewables," says Tim Seymour, a managing Partner at Triogem Asset Management. Dan Nathan, a veteran trader and editor of RiskReversal, said: " Wind and solar will and should be huge, but I suspect there will be some sort of financial fallout in the coming months and years that will make investing in these companies a difficult proposition as the world grapples with low oil costs." Oil and other commodities are getting pummeled by a wide range of macro economic factors, including falling Chinese demand. That makes traditional forms of energy cheap, and has dampened the urgency to invest in alternate energy sources for now. As a result, solar stocks have been getting hammered right along with energy stocks suffering from a commodities price slump. Here's how some of the larger names have done over the last month: SunEdison ( SUNE) , with a $7.1 billion market cap, is down 11% over the last three months. SolarCity ( SCTY) , with a $5.5 billion market cap, is down 7% over the last three months. SunPower Corp ( SPWR) , with a $3.5 billion market cap, is down 18% over the last three months. TerraForm Power ( TERP) , with a $3.5 billion market cap, is down 28% over the last three months. "I think we're getting near a capitulation moment but its not going to happen in the next week or the next months," Seymour continued. In other words, Wall Street is seeing a lot of uncertainty here. That usually means sitting on the sidelines to wait and see what happens. Investors are watching Washington — where lawmakers from energy dependent states already suffering from a fall in commodities prices are working on their counter-attack to Obama's proposals. "This is going to put companies on the brink out of business if you think this is going to pass," said Seymour. "Clearly there's a number of states where the governments just aren't going to let this happen and they've already talked about lawsuits against the EPA." There's also the Fed factor at work here. Analysts fear that if the Federal Reserve raises interest rates, already-debt laden solar companies could collapse under the weight of all the capital they've raised. In addition to watching Washington, investors are also watching Beijing, where it's likely Chinese lawmakers will implement some policies to stimulate the economy in the second half of the year. That would pump up demand for commodities, making oil and coal more expensive and perhaps again sparking demand for alternative energy source. Despite all these factors hurting the industry, a lot of people on The Street think that the world is headed toward renewables in the long run, so investing in this stuff is hotly debated. It's all in the timing. While some people believe solar companies can't survive without government subsidies and financial engineering, others think they're an investment worth sticking to. Deutsche Bank analysts said in a note that the proposals would favor clean energy companies in the wind and solar sector if they survive potential legal challenges. The note said: "We view this as a potential significant longer term tailwind for all solar companies, particularly US solar developers." So while some of Wall Street will hold on for what promises to be a wild ride, it's certain that even more investors will wait on the solar sidelines to ensure that they don't get burned. See Also: Here Are The Four Major Survivors Of The Great US Solar Cull Apple has a wild new plan to cover trackpads with solar cells Morgan Stanley strategists say they made a 'bad call' on energy stocks SEE ALSO: Wall Street has stopped believing in the most important idea holding China together By Linette Lopez MailTribune.com By Linette Lopez Posted Aug. 3, 2015 at 1:30 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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