What drives intersectoral CO₂ emissions in China?

Aiming to identify the intersectoral linkage of larger CO₂ emissions sectors, this paper studies the CO₂ emissions elasticity of technical and final demand coefficients using the input–output technique. The results show that the greatest emission-coefficient elasticities are those related to transactions between Construction and Manufacture of Non-metallic Mineral Products, between Gross fixed capital formation and Construction, and between Agriculture and Processing and Manufacture of Food, and Production and Supply of Electric Power and Heat Power and Mining and Washing of Coal. All these transactions between these sectors imply that CO₂ emissions control policy only for a specific sector maybe have no obvious CO₂ emissions mitigations if national government promote the growth of those sectors, which have the biggest emission-coefficient sensitivity with it. Now Chinese government formulates the policy to promote new-type urbanization, urbanization will cause the Gross fixed capital formation in Construction, and the more demands for the products of Manufacture of Non-metallic Mineral Products Production, Smelting and Pressing of Ferrous Metals and Supply of Electric Power and Heat Power, so how to balance the carbon emissions in larger emissions sectors and rapid urbanization is a big challenge for decision-makers.