CHANGING ENERGY INTENSITY IN CHINESE INDUSTRY - THE RELATIVE IMPORTANCE OF STRUCTURAL SHIFT AND INTENSITY CHANGE

We analysed three different sets of energy consumption and output value data using a Laspeyres index method to determine the relative roles of structural shift and real intensity change in China's industrial sector between 1980 and 1990. Contrary to prevailing views, we find that real intensity change (economic intensity of industrial subsectors, composed of physical intensity change and other non-structural factors) accounted for most of the large apparent drop in industrial energy intensity in the 1980s. Comparison of economic and physical energy intensity indicators suggests that physical intensity was not the only major cause of real intensity change.