International trade and greenhouse gas emission patterns between Brazil and the original Brics countries

Abstract

The objective of this study was to estimate the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions embodied in trade between Brazil and the original BRICS countries (China, India, Russia, and South Africa) for the year 2022. Based on EXIOBASE data, the emissions indicator reveals that China is the primary source of emissions embedded in Brazilian imports. At the same time, Russia records the highest emissions indicator among the destinations of Brazilian exports, indicating a greater emissions intensity relative to trade volume. The results show that China was the main destination for Brazilian exports, absorbing approximately 23.1 million tons of CO2 . It also accounted for the largest share of emissions embedded in Brazil’s imports, with around 52.8 million tons of TCO2 , an outcome consistent with the trade volume between the two countries. The indicator analysis shows that, for exports, Russia (4.3%), India (1.4%), and South Africa (0.6%) present positive values, while China (-6.8%) has an emissions intensity lower than the average for Brazilian exports. In the case of imports, the pattern is reversed: only China presents a positive value (6.4%), indicating a higher emissions intensity than the average, while Russia (-2.6%), India (-0.2%), South Africa (-0.1%), and the rest of the world (-3.5%) record negative values. Emissions associated with exports were mainly concentrated in sectors such as food production and animal farming, whereas imports were dominated by intermediate and capital goods with high emissions intensity.