Over two-thirds of the historical carbon emissions embodied in legacy capital contribute to China's growing consumption-based emissions responsibility

Substantial carbon emissions from fixed capital over its lifespan exacerbate the climate crisis and deepen carbon inequities. The effective assessment, attribution and management of capital-related carbon are crucial for long-term climate mitigation and sustainable development. Here, by constructing a global environmentally extended multiregional input–output model with endogenous fixed capital, we allocate global carbon emissions from past capital production to current and future consumption throughout the lifespan of capital to reassess China's carbon emissions responsibility and carbon transfer. This reallocation leads to a 36–47 % reduction in China's production-based and consumption-based carbon emissions responsibility and a 19–31 % decrease in net carbon transfer between 2000 and 2015, as China's capital consumption represented less than one-third of its capital formation. However, the carbon emissions responsibility and carbon transfers of China's service sectors—particularly real estate—increase, making these sectors new mitigation hotspots. This is due mainly to the high consumption of domestically produced buildings and machinery and imported equipment from Germany, Japan, and the United States. A critical challenge is that approximately two-thirds of legacy capital will persist and delay the peak of China's production-based and consumption-based emissions responsibility, locking in elevated emission burdens for future generations, even as China strengthens its regulatory targets (e.g., raising its carbon intensity reduction target from 65 % to 75 %). The use of a global cooperation mechanism and intelligent management throughout capital's lifespan, particularly with the extension of capital's service duration, will become a powerful lever for building a low-carbon, fair, and sustainable present and future.