Xu, Xun

  • Primary Program Transportation & Infrastructure
  • Research Interests Freight Transport Big Data, Freight Transport Demand Modeling, Macroeconomics and Chinese Economy

Biography

Xun Xu is a fellow working on freight transport energy demand and freight transport big data. His work has been published in Energy Policy. Prior to joining KAPSARC, he worked at the East West Center and in the Natural Resources and Environmental Management department of the University of Hawaii. Xun received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Hawaii in 2015.

Publications

See all Xun’s publications
  • Discussion papers
  • Commentaries
  • External journal articles
Life Cycle Assessment of Road Freight Decarbonization in Saudi Arabia

Life Cycle Assessment of Road Freight Decarbonization in Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is committed to transitioning towards a diversified, low-carbon economy, necessitating the decarbonization of its road freight sector, which is a significant source of domestic energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This study addresses the critical need to evaluate and compare the life cycle climate impacts of current and alternative truck powertrain technologies within KSA. We conducted a comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) of various truck powertrains, including internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), battery electric vehicles (BEVs), and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs).

9th December 2024
Behavioral Efficiency Improvement via Freight Digitalization as a Viable Near- Term Strategy to Decarbonize the Difficult-To-Abate Road Freight Sector in China and Other Developing Countries

Behavioral Efficiency Improvement via Freight Digitalization as a Viable Near- Term Strategy to Decarbonize the Difficult-To-Abate Road Freight Sector in China and Other Developing Countries

The containment of road freight transport emission growth is a significant challenge to climate change mitigation, as the road freight sector has been one of the fastest growing sources of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and is considered particularly difficult to decarbonize (ITF 2021). Globally, this sector accounts for approximately one-fifth of the world’s oil demand and more than one-third of transport-related CO2 emissions (IEA 2017). The International Transport Forum (ITF) estimates that world freight transport demand (across all modes) will grow more than twofold in the next thirty years (ITF 2021), presenting a significant challenge to the UN’s climate change mitigation agenda. This challenge is exacerbated as low- and middle-income developing countries, often relying on road freight as a key pillar of domestic economic growth, are expected to account for most future surface freight activity growth (ITF 2021; SLOCAT 2021a); however, these countries are ill prepared to confront the mounting climate change mitigation pressure (Timperley 2021; UN Environment Program 2022; Wolf 2022).

4th January 2024
Economic Structural Change and Freight Transport Demand in China

Economic Structural Change and Freight Transport Demand in China

After decades of rapid economic development, China is quickly becoming the world’s second-largest transport energy consumer. Recently, it has also surpassed the United States (U.S.) as the world’s largest oil importer, and it is expected to become the largest oil consumer by the early 2030s.    

6th January 2021
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Aerodynamic Improvement Technologies for Road Freight Transport in Saudi Arabia

Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Aerodynamic Improvement Technologies for Road Freight Transport in Saudi Arabia

For the last several decades, road freight transport has been one of the fastest growing energy- and oil-consuming sectors in Saudi Arabia. With sustainability being one of the key pillars of Vision 2030 and given the Kingdom’s commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2060, decarbonizing the road freight sector has become imperative to meet the socioeconomic reform and climate change mitigation goals set by the Saudi government.

25th October 2023
China’s Green Freight Policy

China’s Green Freight Policy

In September 2019, China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), together with the Ministry of National Resources, the Ministry of Transport, the National Railway Administration, and the State Railway Group, issued the policy announcement, “Guiding opinions on accelerating the development of dedicated railway lines” (NDRC 2019). It stipulated that, by 2020, 80% of China’s primary coastal ports, its large industrial and mining companies with an annual freight transportation volume of over 1.5 million tonnes, and all newly constructed logistics parks need to be connected to dedicated railway lines.

13th October 2020
The Impact of Population Dynamics on Housing Demand and Residential Energy Consumption in Saudi Arabia

The Impact of Population Dynamics on Housing Demand and Residential Energy Consumption in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has witnessed explosive population growth over the past half century. The Kingdom’s population is expected to continue to grow and generate more housing demand in the coming decades. As the country attempts to curb its fast growing domestic energy consumption, population dynamics will impact the residential building sector and its consequent energy demand. A more energy-efficient residential sector will be increasingly important in helping policymakers manage the country’s growing energy usage.  

15th March 2020
Estimating Organic and Local Price Premiums of Eggs: Evidence from Hawaii

Estimating Organic and Local Price Premiums of Eggs: Evidence from Hawaii

Poultry Science 95 (5), 1050-1055

2016
Estimating Organic, Local, and Other Price Premiums in the Hawaii Fluid Milk Market

Estimating Organic, Local, and Other Price Premiums in the Hawaii Fluid Milk Market

Journal of Dairy Science, 98 (4):2824-2830

2015
Local Premium or Local Discount: the Case of Packaged Fresh Tomatoes in Hawaii

Local Premium or Local Discount: the Case of Packaged Fresh Tomatoes in Hawaii

Journal of Agriculture and Applied Economics, 47(3):345-358

2015
Is There a Price Premium for Local Food? The Case of Fresh Lettuce Market in Hawaii

Is There a Price Premium for Local Food? The Case of Fresh Lettuce Market in Hawaii

Agricultural and Resource Economics Review, 44(1):110-123

2015
Evaluating Beijing and Shanghai as Global Financial Center

Evaluating Beijing and Shanghai as Global Financial Center

in Francois Gipouloux (ed.), Gateways to Globalisation: International Trading and Finance Hubs in East Asia, Edward Elgar

2011

Subscribe to our newsletter

Stay informed, inspired, and connected with KAPSARC.

Subscribe