Title: Assessing the impact of carbon emission factors on the efficiency evaluation of logistics industry in China based on the super-SBM model and Malmquist index

Authors: Ze Yang; Longxiao Liu; Gwanyong Oh; Hongyu Lu; Daejin Kim

Addresses: Graduate School of Logistics, Inha University, South Korea ' Graduate School of Logistics, Inha University, South Korea ' Graduate School of Logistics, Inha University, South Korea ' School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA ' Graduate School of Logistics, Inha University/Inha University IPCC, South Korea

Abstract: The logistics industry is one of the largest contributors to global CO₂ emissions, making efficiency assessment under carbon constraints essential for sustainable development. This study evaluates the logistics efficiency of 30 Chinese provinces from 2015 to 2021 by explicitly incorporating CO₂ as an undesirable output. The super-slack-based measure (super-SBM) model and the Malmquist productivity index are applied to measure static and dynamic efficiency and to decompose performance into scale efficiency, pure technical efficiency, efficiency change, and technological change. The results show that static efficiency declined by an average of 7.8% after accounting for carbon emissions, with the largest reductions observed in Shanghai (-0.441) and Zhejiang (-0.203). Dynamic efficiency decreased in 21 out of 30 provinces, mainly due to slower technological progress. In contrast, southern provinces exhibit greater resilience under carbon constraints. These findings provide quantitative evidence for region-specific decarbonisation strategies in the logistics sector.

Keywords: logistics efficiency; carbon dioxide emissions; data envelopment analysis; super SBM; Malmquist index; sustainable logistics; China.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSTL.2026.154275

International Journal of Shipping and Transport Logistics, 2026 Vol.22 No.4, pp.568 - 598

Received: 14 Aug 2025
Accepted: 16 Jan 2026
Published online: 18 Jun 2026 *

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