An empirical study on the interdependency of energy consumption and CO 2 emissions under the international input–output structure of the Asia-Pacifi c region

Questions such as “Who uses energy?” or “Who emits CO2?” are rather difficult to answer. Roughly speaking, before the 1980s (or before ‘China’s open door’), it was possible to categorize countries into developed countries that import primary goods and export manufactured goods, and developing countries that export primary goods and import manufactured goods. The structure of the international division of labor was rather simple. It is impossible, however, to create such a simple categorization today, because the structure of international division of labor, especially in East Asia, has changed substantially, in line with the economic development of the region, including China, since the 1980s.