Energy consumption and economic growth in China: A reconciliation

► Some of the contradictory findings on the energy-growth nexus are due to asymptotic testing under small samples. ► The bootstrap method can provide huge improvements upon the approximations of asymptotic theory. ► 53 out of a total of 60 models that we consider consistently support the neutrality hypothesis for China. ► Future policy oriented research on this nexus should aim toward detailed analyses using sectoral and provincial data.