The short-term roles of sectors during a carbon tax on Chinese economy based on complex network: An in-process analysis

Abstract

Abstract The Chinese government may promulgate a carbon tax on the emitters outside the national carbon trading market in the future. The emission reduction strategy needs to consider the specific features of the sectors. However, existing literature on the roles of sectors during a carbon tax on the Chinese economy is insufficient. The aim of this study is to analyze the short-term roles of sectors during a carbon tax on China’s economic system via complex network theory. The results show that the small-world nature of intersectoral price change flow network and intersectoral output change flow network is significant, and the key individual sectors play important roles. Second, we investigate the roles of sector groups by network motif analysis. The members of the key sector group are heterogeneous, which mainly exist between the sectors with larger price change or output change and the sectors with lower price change or output change. Although the function of sector groups is significant, the frequency is lower. Finally, we compare the results of the in-process analysis with ex-post analysis and found that there was a significant difference between the two. The biggest difference is that the roles of some low-carbon sectors are ignored in the ex-post analysis. Our study is of valuable reference for policymakers in terms of designing a differentiated sectoral emission reduction strategy.