Uneven emission reduction effects of international trade in energy and environmental goods in the global value chain

International trade in energy and environmental goods (EEGs) promotes the diffusion of green technologies and provides environmental benefits to trading countries. However, the uneven distribution of environmental benefits has hindered international negotiations on trade liberalization. This study investigates whether the disparity in technological content of EEGs leads to uneven emission reduction effects in the global value chain (GVC). Based on data panel covering 246 EEGs and 103 countries from 2001 to 2019, a dynamic threshold model was applied to examine the uneven emission reduction effects from the EEG trade. The results revealed that (1) the technological content of EEGs differs among countries, but this difference does not directly contribute to an uneven distribution of environmental benefits.(2) the technological content of EEGs impacts emissions through a threshold effect. Trading high-tech EEGs benefits from economies of scale, whereas trading low-tech EEGs suffers from diseconomies of scale. (3) The proportion of countries benefiting from trade in EEGs is increasing, with imports providing broader benefits than exports. These findings elucidate the situation and mechanism of the uneven distribution of environmental benefits in the EEG trade and offer insights into policy focus shifts.