Abstract: Digital transformation has led to an accelerated penetration of digital inputs into all industries, providing new impetus for sustainable growth in all sectors. As a key national economic pillar industry, the paper and printing industry, whose main products, paper products, occupy an important position in international trade, has become an important object for studying the impact and strategy of digital transformation. The carbon emission and carbon transfer issues involved in the trade make the issue of sustainable trade more and more attention. In this paper, taking the paper and printing industry as an example, based on the panel data of paper and printing industry in 48 economies from 2005 to 2018, firstly, the level of digitalization inputs in paper and printing industry of each country is measured using the input-output method. Secondly, the impact of digital inputs on the sustainable trade of the industry is examined in a two-way fixed-effects model with robustness test and heterogeneity analysis. Finally, institutional quality is further introduced as a moderating variable to explore its moderating role in the impact of digital inputs on sustainable trade. The study concludes that digital inputs in the paper and printing industry have a significant effect on sustainable trade, and this effect varies according to the level of economic development of the country and whether it is a member of OECD or not. In addition, institutional quality positively moderates the contribution of digital inputs to sustainable trade, with government efficiency and regulatory quality playing a more prominent role.