CO2 emissions embodied in international trade and domestic final demand

This paper describes the sources and methods used to estimate carbon emissions embodied in final demand and international gross trade for 65 economies over the period 2005-2015. Earlier OECD analyses of carbon footprints, accounting for global production networks, helped raise awareness of divergences between territorial and resident principles, and between production-based and consumption-based carbon emissions. Understanding the differences in these measures is important for governments to better understand and address greenhouse gas mitigation options. Thus, a new refined methodology was applied to allocate territorial emissions to production-based emissions (industries and households) using OECD Inter-Country Input-Output tables and International Energy Agency (IEA) CO₂ emissions from fuel combustion statistics. In particular, this methodology introduces: 1) explicit distinctions between territorial and resident principles, economic output and final demand-based emissions and emissions embodied in gross imports and exports; 2) estimates by major fuel combustion sources; and 3) fuel purchases by non-resident industries and households.