Search

Carbon emission efficiency, which is mainly affected by economic output, energy efficiency and energy structure, is the effect of carbon emissions generated in economic activities. Improving carbon emission efficiency and narrowing regional differences are very important for green development in Belt and Road Initiative regions with developing countries as the main body. The existing literature mostly uses the Theil index to study the temporal differences in carbon emission efficiency, but spatial differences and the reasons for the differences have rarely been examined. This paper measures the differences of carbon emission efficiency using the Theil index and examines the reasons based on the Logarithmic Mean Divisia index (LMDI) method in five groups of 60 Belt and Road Initiative countries. The results show that the Theil index of carbon emission efficiency in these countries is 0.196, with an intra-group difference of 0.165 and an inter-group difference of 0.031. Between most of the groups, energy efficiency is the dominant factor affecting carbon emission efficiency differences, especially between East Asia and Central and Eastern Europe, South Asia and East Asia. Between most of the countries with the highest and lowest carbon emission efficiency in the same group, such as Singapore and Vietnam in East Asia, energy efficiency is still the primary factor affecting the differences. Only some differences between a few groups, countries and sectors have been caused mainly by energy structures. Therefore, improving energy efficiency is the first way for those countries with low carbon emission efficiency to catch up other countries with high carbon emission efficiency, followed by improving the energy structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study uses a comparative approach for comparing the nexus of economic growth, renewable and nonrenewable energy consumption, urbanization, trade, and CO2 emissions for South and East Asian countries from 2000 to 2018. The short- and long-run connections between the variables are explored using the dynamic common correlated effects (DCCE) CS-ARDL approach, and the causal linkages are assessed using the Dumitrescu-Hurlin (DH) panel causality test. The data show that the factors have long-term relationships. The findings show that nonrenewable energy consumption and economic growth increase long-term CO2 emissions in South Asia, but trade and use of renewable energy consumption reduce CO2 emissions in the short term. Long-term causal relationships between CO2 emissions, renewable energy use, economic growth, and trade are also revealed by the South Asian causality test. In East Asia, economic growth, NREC, trade, and urbanization increased CO2 emissions in the short and long run, while REC appears to reduce CO2 emissions. According to the causality analysis, long-run bidirectional causation exists between CO2 emissions, renewable energy use, economic growth, and trade. Furthermore, policy suggestions may be made, such as using renewable energy sources to lessen CO2 emissions and improving education and corruption to forecast economic growth in the examined areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]