Green technology innovation and financial development: Do environmental regulation and innovation output matter?

Does financial agglomeration promote the increase of energy efficiency in China

Improving the level of innovation is a driving force for the sustainable development of urban economy, ecology and society. Improved data envelopment analysis (DEA) is used herein to investigate 280 cities in China and measure their innovation efficiency during 2012–2018, and a spatial measurement model is applied to analyse the impact of innovation efficiency on ecological footprint. In addition, this paper further discusses the impact of innovation efficiency on ecological footprint of different regions, comparing innovative and non-innovative cities, and eastern, central and western cities. The major findings are as follows: (1) A significant positive spatial relationship exists in the ecological footprint of Chinese cities as a whole, including eastern and central cities. (2) Promoting innovation efficiency significantly inhibits the ecological footprint of not only local region, but also neighbouring regions, with coefficients of −0.2488 and −0.1638 respectively. (3) The inhibitory effect of the increase in innovation efficiency in innovative cities on ecological footprint is stronger in local and neighbouring regions than non-innovative cities. In eastern and central Chinese cities, local ecological footprint is subject to a potent inhibitory effect from the progress in innovation efficiency, while the improvement in innovation efficiency has shown a significant promoting effect in the western region; and the ecological footprint of neighbouring regions only in the eastern cities is inhibited by the improvement of innovation efficiency of local regions.

Spatial effect of innovation efficiency on ecological footprint: City-level empirical evidence from China

Can bank credit withstand falling house price in China

In response to global climate change, China made a commitment about carbon emissions at the UN General Assembly. It will strive to achieve carbon peaking by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060. To help China successfully meet its carbon emissions targets this study examines the impact of environmental regulation on carbon emissions from a different perspective. Using panel data from 30 provinces in China as samples, this paper discusses the direct and indirect effect of environmental regulation on carbon emissions and explains the indirect process through four transmission paths: energy consumption structure, industrial structure, technological innovation, and foreign direct investment (FDI). The empirical results show that the direct effect of environmental regulation on carbon emissions presents an inverted U-shaped curve, it means that when the intensity level of environmental regulation is low, it mainly shows the green paradox effect, and with the continuous tightening of environmental laws, it turns into a forced emission reduction on carbon emissions. In addition, we found that under the constraint of environmental regulation conditions, the coal-based energy consumption is still the leading cause of carbon emissions; environmental regulations have contributed to the upgrading of industrial structure and technological advance, which indirectly play a positive role in carbon emission reduction. However, environmental regulation restrains the spillover effect and capital accumulation effect of FDI, which brings a specific degree of hindrance to technological progress and economic development, and is not conducive to carbon emission reduction. Therefore, we have made the following recommendations: China should make reasonable use of environmental policies to regulate carbon emissions according to the situation of each region, optimize the energy structure and increase the proportion of clean energy use, and improve the technology level of related industries to reduce carbon emissions by innovation.

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Green Paradox or Forced Emission Reduction—The Dual Effects of Environmental Regulation on Carbon Emissions

Environmental regulation and foreign direct investment: Evidence from China's outward FDI

The development of a country's financial sector plays an important role in shaping its industrial structure; however, evidence on the micro level channels through which this relationship appears remains relatively sparse, particularly for developing countries. We examine the banking sector's role in the industrial structure in China by exploiting a quasi-experimental shock from a banking sector reform in 2002 that entailed stricter capital and asset requirements. Based on longitudinal data on manufacturing firms and registered banks from 1998 to 2008, we find that banking reform reduced concentrations in the product market by encouraging the growth of smaller and younger firms. These effects were most pronounced in regions with lower levels of financial development prior to the reform. Our results are robust after considering alternative model specifications and measures of dependence on external financing.

Yan Dong

Papers

Environmental regulation and foreign direct investment: Evidence from China's outward FDI

Banking reform and industry structure: Evidence from China