Supply Chain In China Research Articles

Social risk assessment of the transition from internal combustion engine vehicles to electric vehicles: Material supply chains in China, Japan, and South Korea

In order to reduce carbon emissions, the production of internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs) is being transitioned to the production of electric vehicles (EVs). However, the social unsustainability of this process needs further testing. This study explored the social risk characteristics of the transition from ICEVs to EVs based on the Social Hotspots Database (SHDB), combining with the Social Life Cycle Assessment (SLCA) and the Marginal Analysis Method (MAM). Here, we revealed the differences in social risks in the material supply chains between China, Japan, and South Korea, which may create incentives for 100 % supply concentration in a hypothetical game. In terms of social risk, common substitution trends in the iron‑aluminum sector and synergy patterns in the copper-rubber sector were observed in the three countries. As a key factor influencing social risks, cost factor may change, and cost changes due to transition were mainly influenced by production adjustments and sourcing differences, reflecting differences in production capacity trends. This study makes it possible to consider ICEVs and EVs as two endpoints for transition activity in a SLCA exercise and provides valuable insights focusing on transition, aiding in material selection for future product design and underscoring the importance of proactive consideration of social sustainability indices.

How does output price risk influence agricultural energy consumption? Evidence from China’s lychee market

ABSTRACT Agricultural price risk plays a critical role in shaping farmer behaviours. However, existing studies offer little evidence of how output price risk influences energy-related behaviours in agricultural production. In this study, we investigate the impact of output price risk on agricultural energy consumption by leveraging nationally representative data of lychee farmers with daily prices across the supply chain in China. Our findings robustly demonstrate that an increase in output price risk positively affects agricultural households’ energy expenditures. Additionally, we find that the effects of output price risk are more salient among samples of diesel consumption, small-scale households, and less-educated households. Furthermore, the mechanism analysis documents that output price risk significantly increases the likelihood of participating in the non-farm occupation, as well as adopting energy-powered production technologies and productive fixed assets.

Tracking tantalum stocks and flows in China from 2000 to 2021: A material flow analysis

Tantalum is not only one of the critical metals applied in various advanced industries such as electronics, aerospace, military, and medical applications, but also is considered a conflict mineral, posing a threat to its global supply security. China plays a significant role in the tantalum industrial chain; however, the complete picture of its anthropogenic tantalum cycle remains unknown. This study investigates the tantalum cycles in China from 2000 to 2021 by conducting a dynamic material flow analysis. The results reveal that China's domestic tantalum consumption surged from 91 tons in 2000 to 580 tons in 2021. China heavily relied on importing tantalum minerals to support its domestic production, with a trade dependence rate of 90 %. Moreover, the trade volume of tantalum-related commodities experienced substantial growth from 2000 to 2014 and then fluctuated, with tantalum concentrates as the primary imported goods and electronic products as the primary exported goods. Approximately 24.9 % of the overall tantalum demand was met with secondary tantalum, in which 80 % of such secondary material being recovered during the refining and production stages. Policy recommendations are proposed accordingly, including diversifying tantalum mineral resources and increasing the recovery rates from end-of-life products. These policies can significantly contribute to achieving sufficient tantalum supply and maintaining sustainable tantalum supply chain in China.

How does supply chain digitization affect green innovation? Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment in China

Digital technology will profoundly impact green innovation by enabling deep supply chain transformation through cost reduction and efficiency gains. Based on a quasi-natural experiment of China's supply chain innovation and application pilot policy, this paper investigates the impact of supply chain digitization on green innovation using data from 1836 listed companies from 2013 to 2021. The results find that: (1) Supply chain digitization significantly promotes firms' green innovation level, a finding that still holds under placebo and other tests. (2) Mechanism tests indicate that supply chain digitization enhances firms' green innovation level mainly through optimizing innovation resource effect, enhancing internal control effect and expanding external demand effect. (3) The green innovation effect of supply chain digitization is greater in regions with low supply chain concentration, capital-intensive, non-polluting industries, and higher digitization degree. (4) Supply chain digitization significantly improves environmental performance through the green innovation effect.

The temporal variation of CH4 emissions embodied in Chinese supply chains, 2000–2020

Although the issue of embodied pollutants in China’s supply chains has garnered increasing attention, the dynamic changes occurring within them are unclear. Several existing studies analyze one-year or short-term data in supply chain. China’s overall CH4 emissions have risen from 41.1 Tg in 2000 to 60 Tg in 2020, so conducting long-term analyses can yield a deeper understanding of the dynamic changes across the entire supply chain from production to consumption. This study uses the environmentally extended input–output analysis (EEIOA) and structural path analysis (SPA) methods to investigate the dynamic variation of China’s embodied CH4 emissions in 20 industry sectors from 2000 to 2020, aiming to determine the key supply chain and key sectors. The results reveal that from the final demand perspective, consumption, investment and export drove 52.1%, 32%, and 15.9% of embodied CH4 emissions in 2020. The sector with the highest embodied CH4 emissions has changed from “Agriculture” in 2000 to “Construction” in 2010 to “Other service and activities” in 2020. The top listed supply chain path of embodied CH4 emissions has also evolved (starting from production to consumption) from “Agriculture → Rural consumption” in 2000 to “Agriculture → Food and tobacco → Urban consumption” in 2010 to “Agriculture → Urban consumption” in 2020. Notably, the high-ranked path, “Agriculture → Food and tobacco → Rural consumption”, shows that the embodied CH4 emission flowing between agriculture and the food industry cannot be ignored. The supply chain path “Coal Mining → Nonmetal Mineral Products → Construction → Capital Formation” has risen from 17th in 2000 to 3rd in 2020. Thus, it is necessary to control CH4 emissions from sectors upstream, which are predominantly influenced by the construction industry, and a coordinated effort between sectors is also required to effectively reduce emissions. By 2020, the CH4 emissions driven by urban consumption were 3.1 times that of rural consumption. This study provides a comprehensive analysis of China's supply chain over the past two decades. In particular, it suggests policy interventions by controlling critical supply chain paths and key sectors associated with embodied CH4 emission, thereby facilitating the coordinated reduction of anthropogenic CH4 emissions.

Social Sustainability Risk Assessment of Fresh Produce Supply Chain in China under Computer Technology and Digital Transformation

This paper investigates the social sustainability risks in China’s fresh produce supply chain amid ongoing digital transformation. As computer technologies reshape supply chain operations, understanding and mitigating associated social risks become paramount. This research aims to provide a comprehensive assessment of these risks, examining factors such as data and cyber security, inequality, and ethical sourcing concerns. Ten social risk criteria are identified through literature review and expert opinion. In a Sichuan case study, by integrating hybrid methodology Fuzzy Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) and Fuzzy VIKOR (VlseKriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje), Data Privacy and Security Risks (SR1) stands out as the most critical risk criterion in the supply chain with the highest Q value, followed by Ethical Use of Technology (SR4) and Digital Dependency (SR5). This paper offers insights into how stakeholders can navigate the intersection of digitalization and social sustainability to foster more resilient and equitable fresh produce supply chains.

Compromise in hard times? The impact of deglobalization on corporate social responsibility in the US–China supply chain

AbstractThis study examines the effect of the US–China trade tensions on the corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance of the Chinese suppliers most affected by the 2018 US tariff surges. Using a difference‐in‐differences approach, we find that Chinese suppliers with direct US corporate customers experience a significant decline in CSR performance, compared with their peers without direct US corporate customers. We also show that the adverse effect of tariff surges on Chinese suppliers’ CSR performance is concentrated among those with a strong cost leadership strategy. However, the CSR performance of Chinese suppliers that have direct US corporate customers with high CSR awareness is not affected by the tariff surges. Further analyses reveal that the negative effects of the trade tensions on CSR performance are felt most strongly by the employees of Chinese suppliers. Taken together, despite the challenges posed by the deglobalization wave to the diffusion of CSR across global supply chains, the increasing demand for CSR involvement from US corporate customers can exert significant pressure on Chinese suppliers’ CSR performance.

A multi-objective optimization approach for green supply chain network design for the sea cucumber (Apostichopus japonicus) industry

In China, aquatic supply chain network design does not include the green concept or the coordination of environmental and economic performance. Sea cucumber (Apostichopus japonicus) is an aquatic product of high economic value; however, studies on sea cucumber supply chain network optimization are lacking. This study is the first to design the sea cucumber supply chain and construct an optimization model. Considering the characteristics of the sea cucumber industry, LCA for Experts software and the CML-IA-Aug. 2016-world method were used to assess each aquaculture model's global warming potential (GWP), as the environmental performance indicator. In addition, multi-objective genetic algorithm (MOGA) coupled with Modified Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (M-TOPSIS) integrates yield production, economic benefits, and environmental performance. The results demonstrated that cage seed rearing (CSR) combined bottom sowing aquaculture (BSA) represents the best production strategy upstream of the sea cucumber supply chain. In the downstream, the best proportion of sales channels in supermarkets, boutique stores and online shops accounted for 14.79 %, 58.02 % and 27.19 % of the production, respectively. The proposed optimization scenario 4 (S4) can increase product profit by 27.88 % and reduce GWP by 56.89 %. The following improvement measures are proposed: using sea cucumber aquaculture industry standards (cleaner production and green supplier selection) to regulate the behavior of enterprises, adopting an ecological and green production strategy, eliminating high-energy consumption and high emission production practices, and promoting widespread adoption of green consumption concepts. Finally, these measures may improve the sea cucumber supply chain, achieve coordinated environmental and economic performance development in the sea cucumber industry, and provide guidance for green optimization of other aquatic product supply chains in China.

Green credit and transformation to enhance the plastic supply chain in China: A three-player evolutionary game perspective approach under dynamic green awareness

This study explores green credit to promote the green transformation of the plastic supply chain under carbon neutral and plastic ban policies in China. The relationship and strategy among commercial banks, suppliers, and manufacturers are analyzed using a supply chain structure and evolutionary game theory. Incorporate dynamic consumer willingness to recycle and cost-sharing mechanisms for green innovation. The stability and dynamic probability of participants' strategy selection are calculated using empirical data, including financial situation and carbon emission. A genetic algorithm is used to optimize the game parameters for sensitivity analysis. The results suggest that green credit can facilitate the green transformation of the plastics supply chain, but its effectiveness is affected by consumers' willingness to recycle. The effect of green credit has a marginal effect, with higher interest rates reducing the rate of green innovation and manufacturing choices. Suppliers are not able to share the costs of the transition, and only manufacturers bearing or co-bearing the costs are conducive to a green transition. Lower green input costs favor transition but are constrained by market demand. Environmental penalties are too low to create financial pressure, and environmental uncertainty discourages green transformation.

Green supply chain management influence on theeconomic and environmental aspectsin China.

In China's rapid industrial development, the adoption and impact of green supply chain practices (GSCP) have become pivotal. This research employs a non-radial, non-angle SBM-DEA model to examine the intricate relationship between environmental sustainability and economic advancement. The observation suggests that companies adopting the global sustainable consumption and production (GSCP) framework demonstrate a more substantial alignment with China's sustainable goals. However, this alignment is accompanied by a fundamental conflict between the need for economic growth and the need for environmental caution. This study highlights China's sincere efforts to adhere to global ecological norms, as the environmental outcomes (ENVO) demonstrated. The findings on organizational culture (O.C.) present a complex depiction of China's direction, highlighting the intersection between its longstanding traditions with the pressing demands of modern environmentally sustainable corporate practices. The presence of regulatory variations across provinces highlights the regional differences within the nation, thus causing organizations to adopt adaptable environmental policies. The complex network of supply chains in China and the careful management of financial resources underscore the diverse range of difficulties and opportunities that firms face. This research ultimately provides a comprehensive understanding of the crucial balancing process that characterizes China's path toward environmental sustainability. It highlights the importance of effectively managing these factors, since it is essential for enterprises to achieve enduring and sustainable success.

Identification of Factors Influencing the Construction of Supply Chains in China’s Transport and Logistics Systems

The purpose of the study is to find approaches to identifying factors influencing the construction of supply chains in China’s transport and logistics systems, which is becoming especially relevant in the context of the country’s «new economy» dictated by the active development of digital technologies, e-commerce and changing consumer behavior. Based on a multidimensional analytical review of scientific sources, the classification of internal and external factors affecting supply chain management in China’s transportation and logistics systems is substantiated. The author’s configuration of these factors is proposed, taking into account regional differences, and the structure of the factor field is formed. The result of the research from a scientific point of view was an assessment of the functional effectiveness of supply chain management from the perspective of traditional factors such as natural resources, capital, labor and land, as well as transformational and transactional, including human (skills, qualifications, knowledge), scientific and technological (research, innovation, technology) and material (infrastructure, equipment, materials) factors. The theoretical significance of the study lies in the formation of a configuration of internal and external factors affecting supply chain management in China’s transport and logistics systems, taking into account regional differences. The results of the work include the development of recommendations aimed at optimizing logistics processes, diversifying risks and adapting to changing conditions in the global market.

Research and Development of Financial Innovation Model of Internet Supply Chain

In the context of the rapid development of the Internet, China's supply chain finance business has been well improved, both in terms of technology and efficiency. The development of contemporary new supply chain finance is still relatively good, which is mainly due to the development of financial technology, the problem of information asymmetry has been effectively improved by financial technology, and the financing efficiency has been greatly improved. This paper analyzes JD.com's Internet supply chain finance and gives a series of suggestions for its development, which provides a certain reference for promoting the future development and improvement of China's Internet supply chain finance.

Evaluating Losses from Water Scarcity and Benefits of Water Conservation Measures to Intercity Supply Chains in China.

The severe water scarcity in China poses significant economic risks to its agriculture, energy, and manufacturing sectors, which can have a cascading effect through the supply chains. Current research has assessed water scarcity losses for global countries and Chinese provinces by using the water scarcity risk (WSR) method. However, this method involves subjective functions and parameter settings, and it fails to capture the adaptive behaviors of economies to water scarcity, compromising the reliability of quantified water scarcity loss. There is a pressing need for a new method to assess losses related to water scarcity. Here, we develop an agent-based complex network model to estimate the inter-regional and intersectoral impacts of water scarcity on both cities and basins. Subsequently, we evaluate the supply chain-wide economic benefits of four different water conservation measures as stipulated by the 14th Five-Year Plan for the Construction of a Water-Saving Society. These measures include increasing the utilization rate of recycled water in water-scarce cities, reducing the national water consumption per industrial value-added, and implementing agricultural and residential water conservation measures. Results show that direct losses constitute only 9% of the total losses from water scarcity. Approximately 37% of the losses can be attributed to interregional impacts. Among the water-scarce cities, Qingdao, Lanzhou, Jinan, and Zhengzhou pose a significant threat to China's supply chains. Agricultural water conservation yields the highest amount of water savings and economic benefits, while residential water conservation provides the highest economic benefit per unit of water saved. The results provide insights into managing water scarcity, promoting cross-regional cooperation, and mitigating economic impacts.

Cultivating a Greener Future: Unveiling the Mechanism for Embracing Green Innovation in the Supply Chain

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impacts of organizational support, knowledge sharing, competitive pressure, government policy, relative advantage, and compatibility on the adoption intention of green supply chain innovation. A total of 205 valid questionnaires were collected from managerial professionals operating within the manufacturing sector of the supply chain in China. The findings suggest that factors such as organizational support, knowledge sharing, competitive pressure, government policy, relative advantage, and compatibility, collectively contribute to the adoption intention of supply chain in green innovation by addressing various aspects of organizational, environmental, and competitive contexts. The implications of these identified patterns are further elaborated.

Research on Petroleum Industry Supply Chain in China: Performance and Predictive Analysis of Sinopec Group

As a major producer of oil and gas, China has historically adopted a variety of different approaches to managing its overall oil and gas supply chain. It also incorporates decisions and forecasts of trends in the overall petroleum supply chain in the context of existing domestic and international societal trends, such as the impact of national policies and the supply chains of China’s domestic petrochemical companies in the context of Sinopec’s past annual reports and assessments and recommendations for sustainable supply chains. This article uses the case study of Sinopec, a major Chinese chemical company, to provide statistics on the domestic market context and to propose and discuss risk management and sustainable supply chains for the company’s supply chain, as well as quantitative analysis to forecast and analyze China’s domestic oil consumption, with case studies and data on all indicators, and to show the impact of plans and trends on the chemical supply chain over time. The implications and trends of developing trends in the chemical supply chain are presented, and conclusions and final recommendations are drawn.

Mathematical modeling and dragonfly algorithm for optimizing sustainable agritourism supply chains

The management of agritourism supply chains plays a pivotal role in promoting sustainable rural development and cultivating economic growth within agricultural communities. The study devises a comprehensive methodology aimed at designing and optimizing agritourism supply chain networks. To achieve this purpose, a two-objective mixed-integer linear programming mathematical model is introduced, tailored to accommodate diverse water consumption priorities across different gardens within the chain. Recognizing the NP-hardness of this intricate problem, a metaheuristic-driven solution approach based on MIN-MAX goal programming and dragonfly algorithm is presented to solve the designed model, aiming to simultaneously maximize the total profit and minimize overall water consumption within the supply chain. To assess the effectiveness of the proposed methodology, we adopted a real-world case study of an agritourism supply chain in China. The obtained results indicate the adoption of the proposed method can efficiently lead to the development and mechanization of agriculture in villages. The numerical analysis highlights that recruitment and production costs significantly influence the total profit of the agritourism supply chain. Additionally, the research underscores the pivotal role of sustainable rural development in creating job opportunities within the agritourism supply chain, thereby stimulating economic growth and fostering more profitable enterprises.

Revealing transmissions of atmospheric heavy metals hidden in the Chinese supply chain

Heavy metals (HMs) pose significant risks to human health and the environment. Identifying the sectors that play a significant role in the transmission of HMs has rarely been considered and represents an efficient method to control and manage HMs. By combining atmospheric HM emission inventories, the multi-regional input-output approach, and a betweenness-based method, this study revealed the transmission of HMs (comprehensively evaluated by the Heavy Metal Pollution Load, HMPL) in 2017. In 2017, 119.86 million tons of HMPL were transmitted through China's supply chain, and Cr was the main contributor to HMPL transmission. The results suggest that metal smelting is the primary contributor to HMPL transmission, and metal smelting in Jiangsu, Hebei, Henan, Shandong, and Anhui are the top five critical nodes. These results suggest that the sector's role changes dramatically with respect to HM control under this perspective. The role of HM emission-intensive sectors changed the most, as their production-based HMPLs accounted for 84% of the total HMPL; however, the HMPL transmitted by these sectors accounted for only 45% of the total. The critical HMPL transmission sectors identified in this study provide a basis for policy-making from a transmission perspective.

Greenhouse gas emissions of rice supply chain in China: From production to trade

Affected by climate change, food systems face enormous challenges of mismatch between competition for resources and nutritional demands. More than one third of food system emissions come from pre- and post-production. Research on emissions from food supply chains is crucial for building sustainable food systems and mitigating climate change. Rice is a major staple crop for mitigating emission risks in the food system. Based on the GHG emission accounts of rice supply chain in China from 2000 to 2020, this study analyzes the emission characteristics of rice supply chain during production, consumption, and trade, then elucidates the inter-regional transfers and inter-sectoral flows of rice emissions. This study found that non-CO2 GHGs at the production side contributes 78.56 % of total emissions of rice supply chain. Emissions of rice supply chain showed a promising downward trend of China, with the gravity center moving northward. Emission risks of inter-regional transfers were lower in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River Plain, while higher in the Northeast China Plain. Emissions of inter-sectoral flows predominantly manifest within the agriculture sector in the major rice producing areas or between the agriculture and its downstream sectors. Accordingly, this study concludes potential paths contributing to emission reduction along rice supply chain of China by improving the relationships of production and inter-sectoral and inter-regional trade. This study can provide references for building sustainable food systems under climate change.

Emissions Trading Scheme Brings Transition Risks to Industrial Supply Chain in China

ABSTRACT Emissions trading scheme (ETS) is a market-oriented measure to promote green transition. In order to determine systemic risk among ETS pilots and industrial supply chain in China, this study applies a financial network approach on a system consisting of 7 emission allowances and 27 commodities. The empirical findings confirm that ETS poses transition risks to industrial supply chain by creating new information channels between emission allowances and commodities. Such channels are generated by the extensive financial connections within the ETS-commodity system. The degree of financial connection dynamically responds to shocks from institutional events of ETS, transaction adjustments for commodities, and extreme risk event like COVID-19. Analysis of connection structure shows that most of the products within the ETS-commodity system differ in the ability to generate financial connections. The bidirectional connection feedbacks between them and their connectors exhibit asymmetry. Several centrality indicators also screen out systemically important products from multiple scales. The findings could have policy implications for related authorities, manufacturers and investors.

How will CBAM affect the decarbonisation of steel industry in China? A system dynamics approach

EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) has been promulgated. The steel industry is included in CBAM, which will undoubtedly affect the export trade of China's steel manufacturers to the EU. It is necessary to analyse the impact of CBAM on China’s steel industry quantitatively. By establishing a system dynamics model that can simulate the operation mechanism of the steel supply chain in China, we have clarified the impacts of CBAM on the China's steel export and carbon reduction. Moreover, we have reasonably set up scenarios that represent the possible decarbonisation paths of China's steel industry and evaluated the implementation effect of each policy in these scenarios. The analysis shows that CBAM will lead to a decrease of 32% in export volume and a loss of 58% in export profits for China's steel exporters. The environmental benefits of CBAM are limited. Due to the low trade exposure, CBAM is unable to promote a large-scale carbon reduction in the China’s steel industry. Although CBAM will bring great pressure to steel exporters, a comprehensive policy of adopting more emission reduction measures can greatly improve the carbon reduction efficiency, effectively reduce the negative impact of CBAM, and maintain the stability of steel exports.