Value Chain Activities Research Articles

The recipe to sweet success: competitive advantages for a Spanish chocolatier, 1874–1910

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to unravel the success story of a family business, while engaging with debates in business and management research through the application of corporate strategy frameworks. Implement a structured methodology to evaluate a company’s strategic efforts and explore how businesses historically achieved competitive advantages over time. Design/methodology/approach This company analysis adopts a longitudinal approach on competitive advantages, moving beyond traditional cross-sectional business to transform static models into dynamic ones. It adheres to Michael Porter’s Value Chain model (1985) and his subsequent revisions (1996, 2001) to explore how competitive advantages emerge and are sustained. Data exploration leverages an extensive archival corporate collection comprising approximately 100,000 documents, enabling a thorough examination of value chain activities through primary and secondary sources. Findings Chocolates Amatller effectively channelled its competitive advantages through strategic operational areas, including purchasing cocoa at prices below market value, using strong marketing tools such as illustrative collectible cards and posters and implementing skilful financial strategies. Originality/value Examine why, when and how a Spanish chocolatier achieved a position of prominence among Spain’s foremost industrial figures by constructing Barcelona’s iconic Casa Amatller.

A Winning Green Profile to Stay Ahead? Companies’ Green Value Chain Profiles Based on Competitive Advantage Attainment

The world is entering an era of net zero carbon emissions, and companies are under pressure from their stakeholders to be environmentally friendly or green. While companies must engage in greener operations, they also need to juggle their financial performance. Companies need guides on allocating their limited resources to embed green practices and achieve competitive advantage. Academic studies, thus far, have overlooked this. This study aims to fill the gap by studying companies’ green value chain profiles with different competitive advantage attainments. The 207 companies that responded to the survey are classified into four clusters based on their level of competitive advantage: no competitive advantage (cluster 1), only efficiency advantage (cluster 2), only value advantage (cluster 3), and both efficiency and value advantage (cluster 4). The results of variance analysis showed significant differences in eight out of nine value chain activities across the clusters, except green marketing and sales. Companies with competitive advantages demonstrate greater commitment to green activities, especially those from the value advantage-only and both competitive advantage groups. Between them, they embed green initiatives in different value chain activities. Interestingly, green marketing and sales is the only activity with no significant difference among the four clusters of companies, yet they committed the highest green initiatives to this activity. While this study reaffirms the positive impact of companies’ commitment to green initiatives on achieving competitive advantage, companies need to carefully strategize their level of commitment to green initiatives based on the competitive advantage they pursue.

The differentiated roles of digitalization in firms’ value chain activities: a double-edged sword?

The differentiated roles of digitalization in firms’ value chain activities: a double-edged sword?

Research on High-Quality Development Strategies for the Homestay Industry from the Perspective of Value Chain

This study uses value chain analysis to examine the basic and supporting activities in the homestay industry, explore the challenges present in the value chain activities, and offer recommendations. The study points out that homestay businesses should focus on core competencies and implement a series of measures to achieve value creation and cost control. Additionally, optimizing the policy environment and applying sustainable development are crucial for the transformation and upgrading of the homestay industry. The results provide practical guidance for the industry to achieve sustainable development in an increasingly competitive market.

Value Chain Identification and Impact of the Music Industry on Employment in Serbia

Research Question: The aim of paper is to identify value chain of the music industry and to determine the impact of music industry on employment in Serbia. Motivation: Creative industry is a very attractive topic among both scholars and professionals. A total of 52 sectors are considered as creative industry sectors, including music industry. Our goal was to identify the impact of the music industry on the economy, in addition to the entertaining and amusement value of the music. In order to do so, our goal was to understand all the sub-sectors and activities within music industries. Idea: Although excising NACE nomenclature of activities is rigid, our goal was to identify music industry activities within NACE codes, and to define how the value creation is distributed among various activities within the music industry value chain. Data: Measuring employment is based on combining data from the official statistics entities. Tools: Research required data on the four-digit level of activity (NACE), that were cross-referenced with the findings of the primary research and defined value chain activities of the music industries. Findings: The paper analyses the complexity of the value creation and value chain in the creative industries, specifically in the music industry. Findings support excising literature review and confirms complexity of the value chain in the music industries. In addition, the paper adds value to the scientific research by presenting novel approach that is based on using the Porter value chain model in the music industry and identifying a total of 29 activities within. Further, using created value chain model, paper results demonstrate the impact of the music industry on the employment in Serbia, that has been growing over the analysed period, no matter the COVID-19 crisis. Contribution: The paper expands the existing research related to creative industries and formulates the music industry value chain activities. The significance of this paper stems from the fact that, similar to other sectors within the creative industries, music industry is insufficiently covered by the data of the national statistical authorities. In addition,the paper measures the music industry impact on the employment in Serbia.

THE ROLE OF EXTENDED VALUE CHAIN ACTIVITIES IN ENHANCING ECONOMIC VALUE ADDED PLANTATION COMPANIES IN MALAYSIA

The palm oil industry in Malaysia has faced issues of lower palm oil price and limited land area, and these issues have created a challenging environment for plantation companies to operate in. Plantation companies are constrained in maximizing their profits. Thus, this paper aims to examine the Economic Value Added (EVA) and the factors that influence the EVA of different value chain activities. The dynamic generalized method of moments (DGMM) estimators were adopted for the analysis and the focus was on the -40 Malaysian plantation companies that were listed in the Bursa Malaysia from 2010 to 2018. The results revealed that both downstream integrated activities, namely oleo-chemicals/biodiesel and refineries activities had a significant influence on the plantation companies’ EVA, with the coefficient value 1.12 and 0.09 respectively. Other factors such as the gross margin, crude palm oil price, and exchange rate also significantly influenced the plantation companies’ EVA. The empirical results which were based on the plantation companies’ EVA were influenced by different value chain activities as expected. The findings show that the downstream integrated activities like refineries, and oleo-chemicals/biodiesel activities have played a significant role in increasing the EVA of plantation companies.

Mapping and Analysis of the Sorghum Value Chain in Tehuledere District, Amhara Region, Ethiopia

This study describes sorghum-cultivating households and assesses factors affecting different activities of the sorghum value chain in the Tehuledere district of the Amhara region, Ethiopia. Primary data were obtained by administering structured questionnaires and interviews to 297 respondents across the value chain from smallholder farmers, agro-dealers, traders, retailers, wholesalers, and processors. In this context, the study was able to map the value chain to establish the main actors involved and their relationships. The current value chain has Input Suppliers, Producers/Farmers, Wholesalers/Distributors, Transporters, Processors, and Consumers. Some issues were identified as input supply with some inefficiency and marketing and processing channels as supply was interrupted and producer prices were low. This implies increasing interactions with extension agents to enhance the use of better sorghum seed varieties and fertilizers. The proposed solutions are the cooperation of different actors, higher levels of investment in R&D, better extension services, private sector engagement, encouraging legislation, and infrastructure development to overcome institutional weaknesses.

Implementation of Value Chain and Cooperative Performance: A Case of Twongere Umusaruro Wa Kawa Cooperative Kayonza District, Rwanda

Purpose: In this study, the Twongere umusaruro wa kawa cooperative's value chain implementation and cooperative performance were analyzed. The general purpose of the research study was to evaluate the relationship between the value chain implementation on cooperative performance in the Twongere umusaruro wa kawa cooperative. The study based on value chain and human capital theories. Methodology: The study used a descriptive cross-sectional survey to learn about value chain operations, investigate value chain marketing activities, learn about value chain service, and discover the extent to which these activities affect cooperative performance in Rwanda's Kayonza District. The total population consisted of 170 value chain actors, all of whom were farmers and members of the cooperative. A sample of 119 surveys based on the Slovenian formula used. In this study, the proportional random sampling was used as the sampling method. A questionnaire based on moderately structured interviews used to collect the primary data. The results of the survey were compiled, codified, tabulated, and analyzed. Made a change to improve data accuracy for encoding. The encoded data then entered in Statistical package for Social Sciences version 25. The statistically apparent relationship between factors and cooperative performance was examined with the Qui Square independence test. . Findings: Based on the study results, it was found a meaningful relationship between gender and cooperative performance, service and cooperative performance because p-values associated with gender and service, respectively, were p=0.03 and p=0.00 and did not exceed the 5% significance level. The findings also exposed no significant relation between operations and cooperative performance and marketing and cooperative performance. The findings indicated that the level of significance was above 5% for the operations and marketing-related p=0.462 and p=0.122, respectively. According to the study, value chain operators in cooperatives should pay closer attention to service and gender because of their strong associations with cooperative performance. Value chain developers in operations and marketing should be committed to overcoming any obstacles that hinder the cooperative's performance and should collaborate closely with members and partners to strengthen operations and marketing efforts for the cooperative's sustainability. Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: Further studies should conduct a thorough analysis in this area by taking into account many independent factors in different districts of the country or the region to clearly show how value chain activities affect cooperative performance and to examine the impact of such changes, research should also invest in collecting data from several cooperatives and various cooperative types.

Digital Empowerment: How Small B to B Companies Remodel the Value Chain Through Digital Platforms

ABSTRACT Purpose Digital platforms represent a major technological change that affects the entire value chain of a company and requires digital resources and a flexible organizational structure. Given the resource limitations that SMEs have, it is interesting to find out to what extent they have adopted digital platforms. The aim of this paper is to explore the level of SMEs’ digitalization and how sophisticated these businesses are in using various digital platforms in primary and secondary value creation activities. Additionally, we set out to identify clusters with different needs and behaviors when considering digital platforms. Methodology/Approach To address these research questions, we conducted a survey using a quota sampling procedure to reflect the SMEs’ structure in size and industry. We analyzed the data collected from 194 respondents using a two-step clustering procedure to identify different groups of SMEs with respect to the use of digital platforms. For business activities, we used Porter’s value chain and for assessing the adoption rate, we applied the Moore and Benbasat scale to measure adopters’ perceptions of the technology. Findings Most SMEs use general digital platforms while less than 20% have developed their own platforms or use the platforms of business partners. Organizations with a hybrid structure use the largest number of digital platforms, while enterprises with a fluid structure use the fewest. Companies are using their own platforms or partners’ platforms for primary activities while for support activities are employing general platforms. The most important factor which influences the adoption rate of digital platforms is the image and then comes the advantages they bring. Regarding the clusters, four distinct groups were identified with specific value creation behaviors Digital Pathfinders, Basic Techies, Tech Blend, and Flexible Adopters. Practical implications Practical implications concern both the companies that use digital platforms and the companies that develop them. From the user perspective, this study sets a benchmark for different industries and presents the most common practices Regarding the companies that develop digital platforms, it is important to know the main deterrence factors, namely the lack of testing possibilities and the difficulty in choosing the most suitable solution. Taking into account the specific needs of the four clusters, developers can adapt their product and value proposition to stimulate the adoption of the digital platform. Originality/Value/Contribution This paper contributes to research on digital platforms in the context of transformational entrepreneurship related to crisis or catastrophic events such as pandemics or wars. Furthermore, it adds to existing literature on digital transformation by providing recommendations considering specific value chain activities. Although there are numerous studies on digital platforms, most of them come from developed countries, which makes them less relevant for developing/underdeveloped ones.

A STUDY ON VALUE CHAIN SECONDARY ACTIVITIES IN PROVIDING CUSTOMER VALUE IN JEWELLERY INDUSTRY – (WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO HYDERABAD AND SECUNDERABAD)

The value chain activities are too broad and some are confused to choose right value chain activities to use for their businesses. Even studies are extended to add or remove the actives from primary and secondary now a days. The study investigates the impact of secondary activities of value chain said to be Procurement, Technology development, Human resource management and firm’s infrastructure in providing customer value and achieving a competitive advantage through cost & differentiation. The primary data was collected through questionnaire aims to secure the data which is of high significance for comprehensive analysis of customer perceptions on likert scale and analysis & interpretation of data was through applying chi square. It was found that the value chain support activities doesn’t influence the customer conception and concluded that branded jewellery manufacturers must enhance their efforts for lofty accomplishment of Procurement, Technology Development, and Human Resource Development & Firm Infrastructure. KEYWORDS: Value Chain Secondary Activities, Procurement, Technology Development, Human Resource Development & Firm Infrastructure

Smallholder farmers’ participation in Cassava value addition practices: What drivers matter in Ghana?

Cassava is a major staple food often promoted in Ghana. Cassava farmers in Ghana face several challenges, including high post-harvest losses and low prices due to low-value addition. Available literature on cassava value-addition practices (CVAPs) focuses more on processing due to the perishability of the crop. Moreover, the awareness of farmers and the extent of their participation in CVAPs are not known. This study aimed to identify the factors that influence cassava farmers' awareness, participation, and the extent of their involvement in processing and other CVAPs. Smallholder cassava farmers (n = 217) were sampled in the Awutu Senya West District in the Central Region of Ghana, using proportionate stratified sampling technique. Data were collected using a structured interview schedule and analysed using Multinomial regression and Cragg Double Hurdle Model. Results showed that farmers were aware of the CVAPs and viewed them as very relevant activities they could engage in to improve the marketability of their produce. About 65% were involved in at least 2 of the CVAPs. The major CVAPs that farmers engaged in were strategic sale of tubers to processors, retailers, or consumers; storage of tubers; and collective transportation of cassava products. Farmers' age, sex, household size, off-farm income, total yield, access to credit, market information, and perceived relevance of CVAPs significantly influenced their participation in CVAPs. The extent of participation was, however, influenced by sex, household size, access to processing equipment, and market information. To boost CVAPs among cassava farmers in Ghana, policies should be directed by agricultural extension services and financial institutions towards enhancing farmers’ access to market information and processing equipment. They should also provide financial literacy training to encourage increased investment by farmers in cassava production, processing, and marketing. Addressing gender dynamics within cassava value chain activities should also be a focal point in these initiatives.

Internal versus external agglomeration advantages in investment location choice: The role of global cities’ international connectivity

Global location choices for foreign direct investments by MNCs aim to benefit both from the advantages of collocation with other activities of the firm (internal agglomeration) and the advantages of proximity to local industry clusters of similar activities (external agglomeration). We submit that there are important trade-offs between internal and external agglomeration because internal knowledge transfer associated with collocation of various value-chain activities of the MNC is confronted with greater risk of knowledge spillovers to rival firms if there is a substantial local cluster. Moreover, we argue that the international connectivity of a location reduces the importance of local agglomeration as a driver of investment location decisions because connectivity allows the MNC to reap benefits from agglomeration at a distance through the (temporary) transfer of people and knowledge. Connectivity changes the trade-offs between internal and external agglomeration because it enhances the spatial reach of internal agglomeration more than external agglomeration. The influence of connectivity is greater for service-related value-chain activities than for production-related activities. We find support for these hypotheses in an analysis of 38,873 greenfield cross-border investment decisions across diverse value-chain activities and industries in 71 global cities, 2008–2016.

Rural Households’ Youth Participation in Rice Agribusiness Value Chain Activities: Implications for Employment Opportunities

Purpose: Rice is a food security and multi-value chain crop in Nigeria having the potential to provide employment and income for the teeming population of unemployed youth. The study identified the various rice value chain activities youth participated in, investigated their levels of participation, how they perceived participation in rice agribusiness value chain activities and the constraints affecting their participation.Research Method: A four-stage sampling procedure was used to sample youth from 144 rural households engaging in rice agribusiness activities. Well-validated interview schedule was used to collect quantitative data which was summarised using appropriate descriptive statistics with the hypotheses also adequately tested.Findings: Results show that more males were participating in rice agribusiness value chain activities with a mean age of 29 years. Respondents participated in multiple rice agribusiness activities and majority (77.8%) had favourable perception towards participation. Constraints limiting youth participation include poor land tenure system and bird invasion; majority (89.6%) participated in rice agribusiness value chain activities at high level. Income (r = 0.250) and length of experience (r = 0.211) were significantly related to youth participation. Difference existed in youth participation in rice value chain activities across the three agro-ecological zones. Originality/value: The study revealed that youth actively participated in almost all the activities along rice agribusiness value chain.

Digitalisation and internationalisation in SMEs: a systematic review and research agenda

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide an integrative picture of the state of the art of the literature on digitalisation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as an enabler for their internationalisation process and as a comprehensive view of the specific domains impacted by digital technologies as well as their repercussions on the international outreach.Design/methodology/approachA systematic review which leverages a descriptive analysis of extant literature and an axial coding technique has been conducted to shed light on the current knowledge and to identify primary research areas and future research lines.FindingsThe research indicates that digitalisation impacts the internationalisation of SMEs in three specific domains: (1) internationalisation through the adoption of information and communication technologies (ICT) technologies and e-commerce platforms; (2) international expansion through the digitalisation of value chain activities and (3) international outreach through knowledge acquisition on digital platforms.Originality/valueThe value of this study is threefold. First, the authors attempt to systematically review the literature on SMEs digitalisation and internationalisation and provide a holistic perspective on the intertwining of these two research streams. Second, the authors propose a novel conceptualisation on the dimensions of SMEs digitalisation as enablers to internationalisation. Third, the authors put forward promising future lines of research.Highlights Digitalisation represents a pivotal strategy that allows companies to build new strategic capabilities and is a propeller for SMEs internationalisation.Through e-commerce, SMEs could compete at the same level of multinational companies but enduring lower costs of expansion.Digital platforms allow SMEs to enhance the learning processes about international markets through an immediate access to relevant information.Digital entrepreneurship has enabled SMEs to develop new configurations of value chain activities, evolving their business model or reaching new markets.SMEs are changing the “business as usual” paradigm offering digital tools to build modular architectures that are scalable and agile in their evolution ability.

The exports of dehusked coconuts from southwestern Ghana: Implications for coconut farmers’ role in a rural virgin coconut oil value chain

The export of coconuts creates competition between local value chain activities and the export market. This article examined the impact of dehusked coconut exports on the role of coconut farmers in the local virgin coconut oil (VCO) value chain in the Jomoro Municipality, Ghana. The study answered the following question: What were the quantities of coconut farmers supplied to local VCO processors before and during the export periods? Simple random sampling was used to select 311 coconut farmers for the study. Both structured and unstructured interviews were conducted using an interview schedule and a semi-structured interview guide, respectively. Quantitative data were analysed using IBM SPSS (version 25), while direct quotes were used to support the quantitative data. The results show that the presence of coconut exporters and the rising price of coconuts were major opportunities for coconut farmers. Exporters bought 100 dry coconuts at GHȻ100 while the local VCO processors bought the same quantity at GHȻ60. The international market prices for dry (mature) coconuts ranged from €14 to €15 (GH₵98 to GH₵105) per bag of 50 units. The majority of the coconut farmers, therefore, supplied 70–100% of their coconuts to exporters and 10–30% to local VCO processors. Thus, the exports of coconuts, mainly to Nigeria, Europe and the United States of America, have impacted farmers’ roles in the local VCO value chain. The government should partner with local companies to build more processing plants that will offer attractive prices to farmers in order to keep coconuts in the Jomoro Municipality for processing.

Economic Analysis of Rose Production in Haryana

The present investigation was carried out to study the economics of rose production in Haryana for two cropping years (2019-20 and 2020-21). Sonipat (Rai block) and Gurugram (Pataudi block) districts were purposely selected. The findings revealed that per hectare cost of cultivation and net returns were ?328201.03 and 200858.97 for 1st year and ?305995.21 and 404866.99 for 2nd year of the crop, respectively. The benefit-to-cost ratio was highest in 2nd year (3.89:1) as compared to the benefit-to-cost ratio of 1st year crop (1.89:1). The marketing efficiency was recorded as highest in Channel-I (23.61 and 22.60) by Shepherd and Acharya Method. The findings suggested value chain activities such as the adoption of integrated pest management, insurance, cheap loan facilities, establishment of processing units, and low-cost cold storage transport facilities.ies.

Diversification in resource-rich Africa, 1999–2019

We survey the performance of Sub-Saharan Africa's resource-dependent economies from 1999 to 2019, a period covering the commodity price supercycle, which generated enormous rents for natural resource producers. We show that despite high overall growth rates, these states failed to convert their windfalls into broader forms of development: their economies diversified more slowly than resource-poor countries in Sub-Saharan Africa; their economies became less complex; their low institutional quality regressed further; and they achieved slower progress on human development than their resource-poor counterparts. Case studies of the top three diversifiers—Botswana, Zambia, and Nigeria—underscore the challenges of diversification. We suggest two broad reasons for these patterns. First, economic diversification, especially export diversification, is intrinsically difficult for low-and-middle income resource-dependent countries, due to both Dutch Disease effects and the isolated product spaces of the oil, gas, and minerals sectors. Second, diversification in resource-dependent states is sensitive to institutional quality, yet institutional quality is sticky and typically constrained by political interests that are hostile to reforms. This implies that the development challenges of oil, gas, and mineral dependent states over the coming decades will be significant and difficult to surmount. We suggest a more modest set of goals focused on diversifying into related activities in the extractives value chain and unrelated sectors in the domestic economy, as well as narrowly-focused efforts to boost non-resource export industries.

'Is there value for us in agriculture?' A case study of youth participation in agricultural value chains in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

Developing countries in Africa face an unemployment crisis, with many unemployed youth. Agriculture has been identified as a strategic sector for employment creation targeted at youth, including those who may not have agriculture-related qualifications. However, various challenges limit the effectiveness of youth participation in the agriculture value chain. The study aimed to (i) determine youth awareness of agricultural value-chain opportunities, (ii) determine their perception of their role in the value chain, (iii) determine their perception of agricultural programs targeting youth and their opinions on who is responsible for attracting youth into agriculture and, (iv) to characterise the dynamics of youth empowerment in agriculture. Data was collected using focus group discussions and an online survey and analysed using SPSS and NVivo. Poor knowledge, low levels of awareness of agricultural value-chain activities and careers, and not meeting the minimum requirements for employment in processing and retail businesses were identified as key challenges. Most youth were interested in non-primary activities such as agro-processing, which are less labour-intensive and have a quicker return on investment than agricultural production. However, support services and programs for promoting youth participation in agriculture mainly focus on primary activities, signifying a mismatch between youth aspirations and current support. Understanding youth aspirations, perceptions and dynamics underpinning youth empowerment and participation in value chains is critical for promoting participation and formulating relevant and responsive policies. Additionally, improving access to information and building awareness of agricultural value chains is crucial in reducing barriers to entry. Policymakers should integrate agriculture and food systems knowledge into the primary education curriculum to promote youth awareness and evoke interest in agri-food system careers at an early age.

Multinationals’ value chain configuration for product diversification in emerging markets: Western firms in China

PurposeThis study aims to analyse how multinational corporations (MNCs) organise value chain activities to penetrate new market segments. It contributes by expanding traditional decisions regarding the vertical fine-slicing of value chain activities (whether performed internally or externally) and the consideration of resource-sharing decisions (integration or separation) for each value chain function.Design/methodology/approachThe authors draw on primary data collected from two case study firms operating in the large emerging Chinese market: Volvo Construction Equipment AB and Epiroc AB. In-depth cases illustrate how foreign MNCs expand into new market segments and simultaneously target both the lower-priced mid-market and the premium segments in the Chinese mining and construction industry.FindingsThe results reveal that product diversification creates challenges for managers who must oversee new (vertical) value chains, often simultaneously. Beyond geography and modes of governance, managers must decide whether to integrate or separate value chain activities for the new product lines. The study identifies four main strategic choices for firms to address this complexity, focusing on the decision to internalise or externalise (i.e. within or across organisational boundaries) and integrate or separate value chain activities between different product lines.Originality/valueThis study builds upon the internalisation theory and recent international business contributions that focus on value chain configurations to explain MNCs’ product diversification as a growth strategy in a host emerging market. It also sheds light on the choice of conducting new activities in-house or externally and elucidates firms’ managerial decisions to operationally integrate or separate individual value chain activities. The study provides insights into the drivers explaining managerial decisions to configure value chain activities across product lines and contributes to the growing body of literature on MNC activities in emerging economies by highlighting that product diversification impacts entry mode diversity and resource sharing across units.

Tracing carbon emissions and intensity in relational global value chain activities

Existing studies on emission accounting in global value chains (GVCs) have not focused on the relational nature of GVC activities manifested as the interaction of intermediate goods between enterprises. This paper proposes a relational GVC emissions accounting framework based on an inter-country input-output (ICIO) model distinguishing between domestic-owned enterprises (DOEs) and foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs), which is classified as trade-based, investment-based and hybrid-based emissions. Using AMNE-ICIO tables from 2005 to 2016, this paper traces emissions and carbon intensity in relational GVC activities at the global, economic, and industry levels. We find the following: (1) Investment-based emissions accounted for about 94.15% of the increase in relational GVC emissions, of which more than half comes from the interactive activities between DOEs and FIEs. (2) For the United States, high-income economies, and high-tech manufacturing, investment-based emissions were higher than trade-based emissions, and the reverse was true for upper-middle and lower-middle income economies and China. (3) Although relational GVC carbon intensity was high, the trend of decline was significant. (4) Compared to trade activities, investment-based activities were less carbon intensity in China and upper-middle income economies due to the interaction of production between FIEs and DOEs. The findings add new insights into the coordination of global emissions reductions and the allocation of emissions responsibility.