Impact of energy technology patents in China: Evidence from a panel cointegration and error correction model

Enhancing energy technology innovation performance, which is widely measured by energy technology patents through energy technology research and development (R&D) activities, is a fundamental way to implement energy conservation and emission abatement. This study analyzes the effects of R&D investment activities, economic growth, and energy price on energy technology patents in 30 provinces of China over the period 1999–2013. Several unit root tests indicate that all the above variables are generated by panel unit root processes, and a panel cointegration model is confirmed among the variables. In order to ensure the consistency of the estimators, the Fully-Modified OLS (FMOLS) method is adopted, and the results indicate that R&D investment activities and economic growth have positive effects on energy technology patents while energy price has a negative effect. However, the panel error correction models indicate that the cointegration relationship helps to promote economic growth, but it reduces R&D investment and energy price in the short term. Therefore, market-oriented measures including financial support and technical transformation policies for the development of low-carbon energy technologies, an effective energy price mechanism, especially the targeted fossil-fuel subsidies and their die away mode are vital in promoting China's energy technology innovation.     

Coal consumption and economic growth: Evidence from a panel of OECD countries

This study examines the relationship between coal consumption and economic growth for 25 OECD countries within a multivariate panel framework over period 1980–2005. The Larsson et al. (2001) panel cointegration test indicates there is a long-run equilibrium relationship between real GDP, coal consumption, real gross fixed capital formation, and the labor force. The respective coefficients for real gross fixed capital formation and the labor force are positive and statistically significant whereas the coefficient for coal consumption is negative and statistically significant. The results of the panel vector error correction model reveal bidirectional causality between coal consumption and economic growth in both the short- and long-run; however, the bidirectional causality in the short-run is negative.     

Energy,human capital and economic growth in Asia Pacific countries — Evidence from a panel cointegration and causality analysis

This paper examines the cointegration and causal relationship between energy consumption and economic development in 16 Asia Pacific countries over the period 1970–2011 using the augmented production function which considers not only physical capital and labor but also human capital. This is likely among the first of the energy–growth nexus literature to include human capital in the multivariate framework. Using recently developed panel unit root test and cointegration test that allow for cross-sectional dependence, this paper finds a long-run cointegrating relationship between these variables. Continuously-updated fully modified (Cup-FM) estimates are subsequently compared with panel heterogeneous fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS) results to confirm the importance of accounting for interdependence across countries. The bootstrap panel Granger causality test results find economic growth Granger cause energy use in the region but the relationship varies for individual countries.     

Renewable energy consumption and economic growth: Evidence from a panel of OECD countries

This study examines the relationship between renewable energy consumption and economic growth for a panel of twenty OECD countries over the period 1985–2005 within a multivariate framework. Given the relatively short span of the time series data, a panel cointegration and error correction model is employed to infer the causal relationship. The heterogeneous panel cointegration test reveals a long-run equilibrium relationship between real GDP, renewable energy consumption, real gross fixed capital formation, and the labor force with the respective coefficients positive and statistically significant. The Granger-causality results indicate bidirectional causality between renewable energy consumption and economic growth in both the short- and long-run.     

Energy consumption and economic growth relationship: Evidence from panel data for low and middle income countries

This paper uses the panel data of energy consumption (EC) and economic growth (GDP) for 51 countries from 1971 to 2005. These countries are divided into three groups: low income group, lower middle income group and upper middle income group countries. Firstly, a relationship between energy consumption and economic growth is investigated by employing Pedroni (1999) panel cointegration method. Secondly, panel causality test is applied to investigate the way of causality between the energy consumption and economic growth. Finally, we test whether there is a strong or weak relationship between these variables by using Pedroni (2001) method. The empirical results of this study are as follows: i) Energy consumption and GDP are cointegrated for all three income group countries. ii) The panel causality test results reveal that there is long-run Granger causality running from GDP to EC for low income countries and there is bidirectional causality between EC and GDP for middle income countries. iii) The estimated cointegration factor, β, is not close to 1. In other words, no strong relation is found between energy consumption and economic growth for all income groups considered in this study. The findings of this study have important policy implications and it shows that this issue still deserves further attention in future research.     

Energy consumption and economic growth: New insights into the cointegration relationship

This paper examines the long-run relationship between energy consumption and real GDP, including energy prices, for 25 OECD countries from 1981 to 2007. The distinction between common factors and idiosyncratic components using principal component analysis allows to distinguish between developments on an international and a national level as drivers of the long-run relationship. Indeed, cointegration between the common components of the underlying variables indicates that international developments dominate the long-run relationship between energy consumption and real GDP. Furthermore, the results suggest that energy consumption is price-inelastic. Causality tests indicate the presence of a bi-directional causal relationship between energy consumption and economic growth.     

Energy consumption and economic growth in the USA: Evidence from renewable energy

Recent debates about renewable energy consumption manifest two main expectations. Firstly, renewable energy consumption should contribute to economic growth and secondly, it should not cause damage on environment. This study focuses on the first issue by applying Toda–Yamamoto procedure and bootstrap-corrected causality test for the US since empirical literature criticizes the Toda–Yamamoto test which bases on asymptotic distribution. The models consist of real GDP, employment, investment and kinds of renewable energy consumption. Only one causal relationship was found from biomass-waste-derived energy consumption to real GDP. No causal relationship was found between real GDP and all of the other renewable energy kinds—total renewable energy consumption, geothermal energy consumption, hydro-electric energy consumption, biomass energy consumption and biomass-wood-derived energy consumption. That is using of energy from waste cause not only solving the dumping problems but also it contributes to real GDP. For policy purpose, the results of this study suggest that countries should concentrate on energy producing from waste as an alternative energy resource.     

Energy consumption and economic growth: Evidence from the Commonwealth of Independent States

This study examines the relationship between energy consumption and economic growth for eleven countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States over the period 1991–2005 within a multivariate panel data framework. Based on (Pedroni, 1999) and (Pedroni, 2004) heterogeneous panel cointegration test and corresponding error correction model, cointegration is present between real GDP, energy consumption, real gross fixed capital formation, and labor force with the respective coefficients positive and statistically significant. The results of the error correction model reveal the presence of unidirectional causality from energy consumption to economic growth in the short-run while bidirectional causality between energy consumption and economic growth in the long-run. Thus, the results lend support for the feedback hypothesis associated with the relationship between energy consumption and economic growth.     

Oil consumption and economic growth: Evidence from Pakistan

This study attempts to look into the causal relationship between oil consumption and economic growth in Pakistan where oil consumption and real gross domestic product (GDP) have increased rapidly in recent years. To this end, the study employs annual data covering the period 1965–2015. Tests for unit roots, co-integration, and Granger causality based on the error-correction models (ECMs) are presented. The overall results support the existence of bidirectional causality between oil consumption and economic growth in Pakistan. This means that an increase in oil consumption directly affects economic growth. Thus, in order not to cause an adverse effect on economic growth, Pakistan should endeavor to overcome the constraints on oil consumption. Moreover, it appears that economic growth induces increased oil consumption.     

Electricity consumption and economic growth: Evidence from Turkey

This study investigates the causal relationship between electricity consumption and real GDP in Turkey during the period of 1950–2000. Both of the series were found to be a stationary process around a structural break by the Zivot and Andrews test. Thus, two different methodologies have been employed to test the Granger non-causality: the Dolado–Lütkepohl test using the VARs in levels, and the standard Granger causality test using the detrended data. Both tests have yielded a strong evidence for unidirectional causality running from the electricity consumption to the income. This implies that the supply of electricity is vitally important to meet the growing electricity consumption, hence to sustain the economic growth in Turkey.     

Energy consumption and economic growth: Evidence from China at both aggregated and disaggregated levels

Using a neo-classical aggregate production model where capital, labor and energy are treated as separate inputs, this paper tests for the existence and direction of causality between output growth and energy use in China at both aggregated total energy and disaggregated levels as coal, oil and electricity consumption. Using the Johansen cointegration technique, the empirical findings indicate that there exists long-run cointegration among output, labor, capital and energy use in China at both aggregated and all three disaggregated levels. Then using a VEC specification, the short-run dynamics of the interested variables are tested, indicating that there exists Granger causality running from electricity and oil consumption to GDP, but does not exist Granger causality running from coal and total energy consumption to GDP. On the other hand, short-run Granger causality exists from GDP to total energy, coal and oil consumption, but does not exist from GDP to electricity consumption. We thus propose policy suggestions to solve the energy and sustainable development dilemma in China as: enhancing energy supply security and guaranteeing energy supply, especially in the short run to provide adequate electric power supply and set up national strategic oil reserve; enhancing energy efficiency to save energy; diversifying energy sources, energetically exploiting renewable energy and drawing out corresponding policies and measures; and finally in the long run, transforming development pattern and cut reliance on resource- and energy-dependent industries.     

Energy consumption and economic growth: Evidence from the economic community of West African States (ECOWAS)

Access to modern energy is believed to be a prerequisite for sustainable development, poverty alleviation and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.However, theoretical models and empirical results offer conflicting evidence on the relationship between energy consumption and economic growth that we remain largely unsure of the cause-and-effect nature of this relationship, if indeed a relationship exists at all.This paper tests, in a panel context, the long-run relationship between energy access, and economic growth for fifteen African countries from 1980 to 2008 by using recently developed panel cointegration techniques.We adopt a three-stage approach, consisting of panel unit root, panel cointegration and Granger causality tests to study the dynamic causal relationships between energy consumption, energy prices and growth as well as relationship between electricity consumption, prices and growth.Results show that GDP and energy consumption as well as GDP and electricity move together in the long-run. By estimating these long-run relationships and testing for causality using panel-based error correction models, we found unidirectional long-run and short-run causality. The causality is running from GDP to energy consumption in the short-run, and from energy consumption to GDP in the long-run. There is also evidence of unidirectional causality running from electricity consumption to GDP in the long-run.This study thus provides empirical evidence of long-run and causal relationships between energy consumption and economic growth for our sample of fifteen countries; suggesting that lack or limited access to modern energy services could hamper economic growth and compromise the development prospects of these countries.     

Oil prices and economic policy uncertainty: Evidence from a nonparametric panel data model

We examine the relationship between oil prices and economic policy uncertainty in G7 countries. To do so, we employ a nonparametric panel data technique that allows the trend and coefficient functions to evolve as unknown time-varying functional forms. We also estimate country-specific and common trend functions allowing them to evolve over time. Using monthly data from G7 countries over the period 1997:01–2018:06, we find that the effect of oil prices on economic policy uncertainty is time-varying. Our results show that the estimated time-varying coefficient function of the oil price was negative in years in which increases in oil prices were driven by a surge in global aggregate demand. Further, our nonparametric local linear estimates show that the country-specific and common trend functions are increasing over time. Our findings are robust to endogeneity and alternative specifications.     

Electricity consumption and economic growth nexus in Portugal using cointegration and causality approaches

The aim of this paper is to re-examine the relationship between electricity consumption, economic growth, and employment in Portugal using the cointegration and Granger causality frameworks. This study covers the sample period from 1971 to 2009. We examine the presence of a long-run equilibrium relationship using the bounds testing approach to cointegration within the Unrestricted Error-Correction Model (UECM). Moreover, we examine the direction of causality between electricity consumption, economic growth, and employment in Portugal using the Granger causality test within the Vector Error-Correction Model (VECM). As a summary of the empirical findings, we find that electricity consumption, economic growth, and employment in Portugal are cointegrated and there is bi-directional Granger causality between the three variables in the long-run. With the exception of the Granger causality between electricity consumption and economic growth, the rest of the variables are also bi-directional Granger causality in the short-run. Furthermore, we find that there is unidirectional Granger causality running from economic growth to electricity consumption, but no evidence of reversal causality.     

Pollution and economic growth: Evidence from Central and Eastern European countries

We investigate the relationships between pollution and growth in eleven Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries. Aggregate results, robust to different estimators and control variables, reveal an increasing nonlinear link between GDP and CO2 for the group of CEE countries. However, at a disaggregated, country-level, the relationship between GDP and CO2 is characterized by much diversity among CEE countries, namely: N-shaped, inverted-N, U-shaped, inverted-U, monotonic, or no statistical link. Thus, despite an aggregated upward trend, some CEE countries managed to secure both higher GDP and lower CO2 emissions. From a policy perspective, EU policymakers could pay more attention to these countries, and amend the current unique environmental policy to account for country-heterogeneities in order to support economic growth without damaging the environment.     

Causality between energy consumption and output growth in the Indian cement industry: An application of the panel vector error correction model (VECM)

The aim of this paper is to examine the existence and direction of the causal relationship between energy consumption and output growth in the Indian cement industry for the period 1979–80 to 2004–05. The most recently developed panel unit root, a heterogeneous panel cointegration and panel-based error correction model, is applied within a multivariate framework. The empirical results confirm a positive, long-run cointegrated relationship between output and energy consumption when heterogeneous state effects are taken into account. We also found a long-run, bi-directional relationship between energy consumption and output growth in the Indian cement industry for the study period, implying that an increase in energy consumption directly affects the growth of this sector and that growth stimulates further energy consumption. These empirical findings imply that energy consumption and output are jointly determined and affect each other. The empirical evidence also suggests the implementation of energy conservation policies oriented toward improving energy-use efficiency to avoid any negative impacts of the conservation policies on the growth of this industry.     

Energy consumption,economic growth and prices: A reassessment using panel VECM for developed and developing countries

This paper reinvestigates the energy consumption–GDP growth nexus in a panel error correction model using data on 20 net energy importers and exporters from 1971 to 2002. Among the energy exporters, there was bidirectional causality between economic growth and energy consumption in the developed countries in both the short and long run, while in the developing countries energy consumption stimulates growth only in the short run. The former result is also found for energy importers and the latter result exists only for the developed countries within this category. In addition, compared to the developing countries, the developed countries’ elasticity response in terms of economic growth from an increase in energy consumption is larger although its income elasticity is lower and less than unitary. Lastly, the implications for energy policy calling for a more holistic approach are discussed.     

Energy consumption and economic growth revisited in African countries

The aim of this paper is to provide new empirical evidence on the relationship between energy consumption and economic growth for 21 African countries over the period from 1970 to 2006, using recently developed panel cointegration and causality tests. The countries are divided into two groups: net energy importers and net energy exporters. It is found that there exists a long-run equilibrium relationship between energy consumption, real GDP, prices, labor and capital for each group of countries as well as for the whole set of countries. This result is robust to possible cross-country dependence and still holds when allowing for multiple endogenous structural breaks, which can differ among countries. Furthermore, we find that decreasing energy consumption decreases growth and vice versa, and that increasing energy consumption increases growth, and vice versa, and that this applies for both energy exporters and importers. Finally, there is a marked difference in the cointegration relationship when country groups are considered.     

The asymmetric linkage between energy use and economic growth in selected African countries: Evidence from a nonlinear panel autoregressive distributed lag model

This paper endeavors to shed light on the asymmetric heterogeneous relationship between energy use and economic growth in nineteen selected African countries from 1971 to 2014. We employ, to this end, a nonlinear panel autoregressive distributed lag model and an asymmetric panel causality test. The empirical results suggest that the relationship between energy use and economic growth is asymmetric and depends on the phases of economic cycle. Firstly, in periods of economic expansion, positive shocks on energy use have a positive and significant effect on economic growth in the long-run but have a weak positive effect in the short-run. Negative shocks on energy use have a negative and significant effect on economic growth in the long-run but a positive and significant effect in the short-run. Moreover, in periods of economic expansion, economic growth tends to react more to a decrease in energy use than to an increase in energy use. Secondly, in period of economic contraction, positive shocks on energy use accentuate the negative variation of economic growth in the long-run while in the short-run, economic contraction is resorb by negative shocks on energy use. Thirdly, net energy-importing economies located in North Africa, East Africa, Central Africa and Southern Africa are the most subject to energy asymmetric shocks. For net energy-exporting countries, the asymmetric relationship between energy use and economic growth is mixed. We also find that negative changes in economic activity lead to negative variations of energy use. Fourthly, positive and negative shocks on the cyclical components of energy use and economic growth do not have, over the time, the same correlation with positive and negative shocks of one or other of the variables. From the research that has been carried out, it appears that sound economic policy decisions require information on the asymmetric linkage between energy use and economic growth.     

Structural breaks, energy consumption, and economic growth revisited: Evidence from Taiwan

This paper studies the stability between energy consumption and GDP for Taiwan during 1954–2003. We use aggregate as well as various disaggregate data of energy consumption, including coal, oil, gas, and electricity, to employ the unit root tests and the cointegration tests allowing for structural breaks. Our main findings are: First, though gas consumption seems to have structural breaks in the 1960s, after considering the structural breaks, the series is a stationary variable when Taiwan adopted its expansionary export trade policy. Second, we find that different directions of causality exist between GDP and various kinds of energy consumption. The empirical result shows unanimously in the long run that energy acts as an engine of economic growth, and that energy conservation may harm economic growth. Third, the cointegration between energy consumption and GDP is unstable, and some economic events may affect the stability. Overall, we do find the structural breakpoints, and they look to match clearly with the corresponding critical economic incidents.