A Discussion And Policy Suggestion Of BRIC Countries On CO₂ Emissions Embodied In International Trade

International trade has strong impact on climate change. The environment impact can be divided into three effects:the scale effect, the composition effect and the technology effect. In the last decade, BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) have witnessed the highest economic growth rates as well as the fastest expansion in trade. Within the same period of time they also emerged as the world’s largest GHG(Green House Gas) emitting countries. Therefore the question is whether the GHG emission increases in BRIC countries due to international trade? Are these BRIC countries becoming so called "pollution haven". I attempt to find the differences and reasons between the BRIC countries GHG emission due to international trade.In this article the author employs the input-output analysis model and structure decomposition analysis model to assess the C02 emissions embodied in trade in BRIC countries. I divide the contribution factor into the scale effect, the composition effect and the technology effect. Moreover, I compare the C02 emissions embodied in trade, the structure of energy consumption and the trade structure of the BRIC countries. In the end, I put forward the policy suggestion.The results show that Brazil doesn’t belong to "pollution haven". Russia has a big imbalance on trade embodied CO2 emission. Russia becomes the so called "pollution haven". Thanks to its strong service sector, India actually benefits from the trade flow. Since 2000, China becomes the net surplus country in CO2 emissions embodied in trade.Therefore, the BRIC countries should learn from others’strong points to offset one’s weakness. China should slow down the C02 emissions embodied in trade by enhancing the global cooperation, developing the clear production technology, promoting the high technology industry and optimizing the trade structure.