Differences in carbon emissions between the digital economy sectors in China and the USA

In an era of rapid development of digital technologies and dramatic global climate change, digital economy is crucial to achieving the 'carbon peak' and 'carbon neutral' goals. However, less research has been done in the area of indirect carbon emissions in the digital economy sector. Therefore, this study uses an input-output model to calculate the embodied carbon emissions of the ICT (information and communication technology) industry in China and the USA in 2005, 2010 and 2016 from the production and consumption sides. Moreover, a comparative analysis is conducted in terms of the driving factors of carbon emissions and the relationship between emissions and economic benefits in the two countries. The results reveal that emissions are larger on the production side in the USA and on the consumption side in China. For both countries, electricity is the largest upstream sector in terms of emissions. ICT in the USA causes sectoral emissions mainly in manufacturing and services. While China mainly causes sectoral emissions in manufacturing. The US ICT sector is more economically efficient for the same emissions. Regarding drivers, the primary driver of the fall in emissions is a reduction in emission intensity. The increase in emissions driven by final demand is greater in China than in the USA. Finally, the results of the two countries are extended to other developed countries and emerging economies, providing recommendations for reducing carbon emissions in the ICT sector.