Trade and Climate: Towards Reconciliation

International audienceTo limit greenhouse-gas emissions, is it necessary to restrict international trade? By dissociating where products are produced from where they are consumed, international trade contributes significantly to greenhousegas emissions worldwide, especially when goods are transported. It also displaces the location of emissions: the consumption-induced carbon footprint of OECD countries is higher than their level of emissions. Large emerging countries find themselves in the opposite case. However, halting international trade would be particularly ineffective to reduce GHG emissions. According to oursimulations, raising average import tariffs to 17% (as opposed to current 5%, except for agricultural products) and accepting a fall in aggregate production of 1.8% would only lead to 3.5% GHG emission reduction by 2030. We confirm that a uniform and moderate import tariff imposed by a “club” of countries adopting ambitious and binding policies to fight climate change, against all imports from countries outside of the club, would be effective