The drag effect of coal consumption on economic growth in China during 1953–2013

摘要

Highlights?This study analyses drag effect of coal consumption on economic growth in China.?The growth drag caused by coal consumption is 0.0252.?Scarcity of coal consumption will represent a challenge to China’s economic growth.?Control of excessive population growth is essential to reduce the drag effect.AbstractRapid economic growth in China is largely dependent on coal consumption, so the scarcity of coal represents a major challenge for sustainable development in the country. A model predicting the drag effect of coal consumption on economic growth in China would be useful for decision-making. In this paper, we apply Romer’s growth drag theory and estimate the drag effect of coal consumption on economic growth using a Johansen cointegration test, partial least squares regression, and a drag equation. The results show that the growth drag caused by coal consumption is 0.0252. This means that re