How does digital finance influence green technology innovation in China? Evidence from the financing constraints perspective

Exploring the convergence of ICT, digital financial inclusion, environmental pressures, and free trade and their significance in driving sustainable green investment initiatives under carbon neutrality targets

Due to its rapid economic development over the past few decades, China is now at the forefront of environmental issues, necessitating creative solutions that combine ICT, digital financial inclusion, environmental pressure, and free trade to encourage green investment. This study aims to investigate the linkage between ICT, digital financial inclusion, environmental pressure, free trade, and green investment in China from 1996 to 2022 by employing the Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). As per our results, the statistical values of Cronbach's alpha, composite reliability, and average variance are all above the cutoff point, demonstrating the applicability of this methodology. According to the structural model's results, the path coefficients between digital financial inclusion and green investment, environmental pressure and green investment, and GDP and green investment are positively significant, implying that these three factors are crucial for boosting green investment in China. In addition, our vector autoregressive model results suggest that ICT, digital financial inclusion, environmental pressures, free trade, and GDP cause green investment to rise in China. Thus, the policymakers in China should focus on developing comprehensive policies to encourage green investment in China, which is crucial for economic and environmental sustainability.

How does digital finance reduce carbon emissions intensity? Evidence from chain mediation effect of production technology innovation and green technology innovation

The digitalization of finance drives economic development and plays a crucial role in energy conservation and carbon emission reduction. Utilizing carbon emissions data from 2011 to 2020, we find that digital finance development can mitigate carbon emissions intensity (CEI) by approximately 0.14 %. Then, we employ a diverse set of robustness and endogeneity tests to assess the reliability of the empirical findings. Moreover, the study delves into how digital finance impacts CEI through production technology innovation (PTI) and green technology innovation (GTI). The results indicate a positive effect of PTI on CEI. GTI exerts a negative influence on CEI. In addition, there is a chain mediation effect between PTI and GTI in the baseline path. Finally, the impact of digital finance on CEI exhibits apparent regional heterogeneity.

Can new urbanization pilot policies promote green technology innovation in cities: Empirical evidence from China

The development of urbanization has brought new challenges to the ecological environment, and the promotion of green technology innovation and development is widely recognized as an essential method to achieve cities' economic benefits and environmental protection. This paper examines whether the new urbanization pilot policies (NUP) increase green technology innovation (GTI) from both theoretical and empirical perspectives. This paper examines the impact of new urbanization on GTI by analyzing data from 285 cities in China between 2010 and 2021, using the multi-period DID model with the implementation of NUP as an exogenous policy shock. The study results indicate that NUP significantly affects GTI, and the conclusion still holds after the parallel trend test, placebo test, and other robustness tests. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the NUP significantly enhances GTI in low environmental pollution, non-resource-based, Medium-sized, and Central Region cities. The test of moderating effect shows that NUP has a "linkage effect" with the government's environmental attention, financial investment in innovation, and regional talent pooling. The findings of this paper provide empirical evidence and decision-making reference for promoting NUP and sustainable development of cities.

Exploration and future trends on spatial correlation of green innovation efficiency in strategic emerging industries under the digital economy: A social network analysis

With digital technological change and the increasing frequency of interregional innovation links, the spatial correlation and diversity of strategic emerging industries' green innovation efficiency (SEI-GIE) need to be explored in depth. This paper innovatively constructs the SEI-GIE input-output index system under digital economy. The proposed grey model FINGBM(1,1) with ω-order accumulation and weighted initial value optimization realizes effective prediction of 7 input-output indicators of 30 provinces in China from 2021 to 2025. Super-SBM-DEA, gravity model, and social network analysis are applied to explore spatial network structure's dynamic process of SEI-GIE from 12th to 14th Five-Year-Plan period (2011-2025). Empirical results show that (1) Under the effect of digital economy, the SEI-GIE in China generally shows a U-shaped fluctuation trend, in which the growth trend in the central region is obvious, and the western region shows significant fluctuations. (2) The spatial correlation network of SEI-GIE presents a complex and stable center-periphery circle. Particularly, the overall increase in network efficiency highlights the strong small-world characteristics. (3) Beijing, Shanghai, Zhejiang and Jiangsu have always been in the leading core position, with strong influence and control; And Tianjin's core position in the network will decline. Additionally, Guangxi and Chongqing have great potential, but Guangdong needs to strengthen its radiation effect. (4) Block model shows that plate-I (Beijing, Tianjin) receive spatial spillovers from others, while plates-III,IV have significant spillover effects. This study provides theoretical reference for policymakers from a network perspective to promote development of China's SEI-GIE.

A study on the impact of ESG rating on green technology innovation in enterprises: An empirical study based on informal environmental governance

Improving corporate green technology innovation is a key link in achieving green transformation and development. Compared with formal environmental regulations that force companies to carry out green innovation passively, ESG ratings under soft environmental regulations can better stimulate the internal motivation of companies. This study uses the ESG ratings of listed companies published for the first time by SynTao Green Finance as an exogenous impact. Taking China's A-share listed companies from 2011 to 2022 as a research sample, the multi-period differences-in-differences model was used to empirically test the impact of ESG rating soft supervision on corporate green technology innovation. The results show that the impact of ESG rating events as a soft market regulation has a significant positive impact on the improvement of corporate green technology innovation. This conclusion still holds after a series of robustness tests. Meanwhile, enterprise digital transformation plays a positive regulatory role. The heterogeneity test shows that the green technology innovation of state-owned enterprises is more affected by ESG ratings. Mechanism research has found that ESG rating events promote corporate green technology innovation by easing corporate financing constraints and reducing managerial myopia. Further research found that under the influence of the external environment, intensified market competition and increased attention from the capital market are also conducive to the improvement of corporate green technology innovation. This study strengthens the corporate ESG concept under the guidance of green development and provides empirical evidence for promoting corporate green transformation.

Technology empowerment: Digital transformation and enterprise ESG performance-Evidence from China's manufacturing sector

In light of the long-term constraints posed by the "dual carbon" objective, can digital technology emerge as a transformative solution for enterprises to embark on a sustainable development trajectory? The existing body of research has yet to reach a consensus. In order to shed further light on the intricate relationship between digital transformation and ESG performance of enterprises, this study empirically examines the mechanisms and boundaries through which digital transformation influences ESG performance, based on observational data from A-share manufacturing listed companies in Shanghai Stock Exchange and Shenzhen Stock Exchange spanning from 2011 to 2021. The findings demonstrate that digital transformation exerts a significant positive impact on the ESG performance of manufacturing enterprises. Mechanism analysis reveals that the enabling effect of digital transformation primarily enhances company transparency, thereby fostering continuous improvements in ESG performance among manufacturing enterprises. The performance expectation gap will give rise to the phenomenon of "stop-loss in time" and impede the promotional impact of digital transformation. Further investigation into industrial characteristics and industry competition intensity indicates that state-owned enterprises and those operating within highly competitive environments experience more pronounced effects of digital transformation on their ESG performance. This study expands the mechanism and boundary of digital transformation on ESG performance of manufacturing enterprises, and provides a new perspective for manufacturing enterprises to realize the collaborative transformation of digital and green.

How digital finance impacts listed companies' green innovation in China: a product market perspective

We empirically test whether and how digital finance impact green innovation utilizing data from Chinese listed companies and the Digital Inclusive Finance Index at the city level over the period from 2011 to 2020. The results show the following: (a) digital finance has a positive impact on green innovation, (b) improving consumer demand and strengthening market competition are two important influence channels, (c) customer concentration and corporate social responsibility are two important moderating variables that affect the aforementioned product market mechanisms, and (d) the positive impact of digital finance is more prominent within state-owned enterprises, companies with high financial risks, economically underdeveloped regions, and low-polluting industries. This research provides insights for China and similar economies on how to leverage the significant role of digital finance in achieving their net-zero-carbon targets.

Exploring the moderating role of digital finance in the two-way foreign direct investment and green technology innovation nexus: an empirical evidence from China

Based on the provincial panel data of China from 2011 to 2020, this paper explores the relationship between two-way FDI and green technology innovation and examines the moderating role of digital finance in the impact of two-way FDI on green technology innovation. The results show that (1) two-way FDI can significantly enhance the level of green technology innovation. (2) Digital finance plays a moderating effect in the process of two-way FDI to enhance the level of green technology innovation. The conclusion is still robust by replacing the dependent variable, eliminating special samples and shrinking the tail. (3) The results of sub-dimensional analysis show that the three sub-dimensions indicators of the digital finance also have a positive moderating effect on the relationship between two-way FDI and green technology innovation. (4) The results of sub-regional regression show that the moderating effect in the central and western regions is greater than that in the eastern region. The results of the study can provide reference for governments to formulate policies about digital finance, which is conducive to achieve high-quality opening-up and realize green development.

The effect of green fiscal policy on green technological innovation: evidence from energy saving and emission reduction fiscal policy

The "National Comprehensive demonstration of Energy Saving and Emission Reduction Fiscal Policy" (ESER policy) is a green fiscal policy to facilitate China's green sustainable development. Green sustainable development is facilitated by green technological innovation. Thus, evaluating the influence of the ESER policy on green technological innovation is essential. This study employs the difference-in-differences model to assess the ESER policy effects. The findings suggest that the ESER policy facilitates green technological innovation, but the policy effect has inhibited green technology innovation in neighboring cities. Mechanism analysis indicates that this policy effect is realized through increasing scientific research investment intensity and promoting industrial structure upgrading. Heterogeneity analysis indicates that this policy is effective in facilitating green technological innovation when performed in eastern, non-old industrial base, non-resource-based, and high green innovation level cities. In addition, the ESER policy implemented in conjunction with innovation policy can be more effective in promoting green technological innovation. These results provide valuable insights for improving the ESER policy and offer helpful guidelines for green fiscal policymaking in other countries.

Spatio-temporal effects of digital inclusive finance on the synergy between CO2 and air pollution emissions in 251 Chinese cities

Achieving the synergistic reduction of CO2 and air pollution emissions (SRCAPEs) holds great significance in promoting the green transformation. However, limited research has been conducted on the spatio-temporal impact of digital inclusive finance (DIF) on the synergy between CO2 and air pollution emissions (SCAPEs). To address this gap, we comprehensively employ the linear regression model, geographically and the temporally weighted regression (GTWR) model, and the ordered probit model to empirically analyze the influence of DIF on SCAPE. Our research reveals the following: (1) The linear regression model demonstrates that, on average, DIF can achieve a weak synergistic emission reduction effect. This result remains robust after a battery of robustness tests. (2) The GTWR model reveals that the impact of DIF on both emissions exhibits evident spatio-temporal characteristics. Its emission reduction effect gradually increases, especially after 2014. (3) On the basis of the estimates from the GTWR model, we can identify four distinct synergy types driven by DIF. The number of cities with the preferred type (i.e., achieving SRCAPE) increases the most, from 59 in 2011 to 233 in 2019. (4) On the basis of the built ordered probit models, green technology innovation is an important path for DIF to achieve synergistic emission reduction. The synergistic emission reduction effect is also significantly moderated by the regional economic level and environmental regulation intensity. Our findings have policy implications for central and local governments in achieving SRCAPE and support efforts to achieve sustainable development.

Go for Economic Transformation and Development in China: Financial Development, Higher Education, and Green Technology Evolution

Technology innovation is the key driving force in achieving economic transformation and development. Financial development and the expansion of higher education can promote technological progress primarily by easing financing constraints and improving the level of human capital. This study examines the impact of financial development and higher education expansion on green technology innovation. It conducts an empirical analysis by constructing a linear panel model and a nonlinear threshold model. The present study sample is based on the urban panel data of China from 2003-2019. (1) Financial development can significantly promote the expansion of higher education. (2) The expansion of higher education can improve energy and environment-based technological progress. (3) Financial development can both directly and indirectly promote green technology evolution by expanding higher education. The joint financial development and higher education expansion can significantly empower green technology innovation. (4) In the process of promoting green technology innovation, financial development has a non-linear influence on it, with higher education as the threshold. The effect of financial development on green technology innovation varies according to the degree of higher education. Based on these findings, we put forward policy proposals for green technology innovation to promote economic transformation and development in China.

Digital inclusive finance, R&D investment, and green technology innovation nexus

Green technology innovation is an effective means to achieve high-quality economic development. The impact and mechanism of digital financial inclusion on regional green technology innovation are tested using a threshold regression model and the panel fixed effect model, based on China's provincial Panel data (provincial Panel data are regional annual report data) from 2011 to 2020. According to the study, there is a direct link between local green technology innovation and digital financial inclusion. This paper highlights the differences in their influence by location and usage depth and underscores the necessity of government engagement to improve these characteristics. Information infrastructure needs to be strengthened, especially in areas with gaps. Greater investment in research and development (R&D) indirectly supports regional green technology innovation since it is impacted by digital financial inclusion. Interestingly, a threshold effect becomes most noticeable when digital financial inclusion rises above a particular threshold. Promoting utilizing digital financial inclusion to lessen regional differences in green technology innovation is important.

Asymmetric trade barriers and CO2 emissions in carbon-intensive industry

Since large carbon emissions are transferred through international trade, it is vital to explore the role country-specific trade policy has on carbon-intensive industries. The present study contributes to a deeper understanding of the connection between trade and environment in the literature, especially the impacts of trade barriers on carbon emissions. This topic has received little attention despite the importance of trade barriers to climate change and carbon emissions. Thus, we investigate the asymmetric trade barriers in carbon-intensive industries across different countries and describe the facts and motivations of these trade barriers in carbon-intensive industries. We list some political and trade explanations for the existence of trade barriers and empirically test the impacts of interest groups on trade barriers by the IV-2SLS method. Further, we have observed that certain highly developed countries, including Belgium, Switzerland, and Japan, are providing a notable implicit subsidy valued at over 200 USD per ton for carbon-intensive imported products. Our work carries essential implications for understanding how the manipulation of trade barriers could cause impacts on the environment.

How does transition finance influence green innovation of high-polluting and high-energy-consuming enterprises? Evidence from China

Under the impact of "double-carbon" target, transition finance has an important impact on green innovation of Chinese double-high enterprises. Using a sample of 4270 high-polluting and high-energy-consumption listed enterprises (referred to as double-high enterprises) in China from 2012 to 2021, this paper empirically examines the impact of transition finance on the green innovation of China's double-high enterprises by using a fixed-effects model. The study finds that transition finance can have a facilitating effect on green innovation in double-high enterprises. The intermediary mechanism test shows that transition finance can promote green innovation of double-high enterprises through alleviating financing constraints, increasing the level of green management, and enhancing the policy orientation effect. The heterogeneity test finds that transition finance promotes green innovation more significantly for the double-high enterprises that are state-owned, large-scale, and located in regions with high levels of intellectual property protection. Further research finds that the role of transition finance in promoting green innovation in double-high enterprises helps to promote the achievement of green development of double-high enterprises.

Evaluation of the coupling coordination degree between digital inclusive finance and green technology innovation in China

Digital inclusive finance (DIF) has been growing fast in recent years in China, and green technology innovation (GTI) is strongly promoted by the Chinese government. The coordinated development of DIF and GTI is important for China's economic transition to high-quality development. Therefore, utilizing the panel data of 288 prefecture cities from 2011 to 2020 in China, the research evaluates the coupling coordination degree between DIF and GTI (CCD-DG), analyzes spatial-temporal characteristics of CCD-DG, explores its regional disparities and finally analyzes its spatial effects. Results demonstrate that CCD-DG at the prefecture-city level showed a rise from 2011 to 2020, but the degree was only in the stage of basic coordination till 2020, which was mainly driven by the development of DIF in recent years. The regional disparities in CCD-DG remarkably existed but gradually narrowed down during the observation period, which mainly originated from the between-subregions differences as a result of the huge difference in GTI. Additionally, there was a significant spatial spillover effect of CCD-DG and its spatial distribution was roughly consistent with the spatial effect layout. Policy implications based on these results are finally proposed, including formulating policies with local characteristics to promote CCD-DG, emphasizing the discrepancies of CCD-DG between the East and the Northwest, and that within the Northwest and the South, etc.

Digital finance and green innovation efficiency: empirical data from Chinese listed manufacturing companies

Amid the flourishing digital economy, digital finance overcomes the constraints of the conventional financial model and largely improves the supply efficiency and use of funds. This provides new opportunities for manufacturing corporations to improve their green innovation efficiency. Employing Chinese Shenzhen and Shanghai A-share listed manufacturing corporations between 2011 and 2021, this paper conducts an empirical analysis to study the effect of digital finance on corporate green innovation efficiency. Discoveries suggest that digital finance significantly improves manufacturing corporations' green innovation efficiency. After a few robustness tests, the results are still accurate. According to a mechanism analysis, digital finance increases the effectiveness of green innovation in manufacturing corporations by removing financing constraints. According to the heterogeneity analysis, the impact of digital finance on manufacturing corporations exhibits distinctive financial and geographical regional heterogeneity, particularly accentuated in Zhejiang Province and the central and western regions. This paper can provide a valuable reference for digital finance in supporting manufacturing corporations in green innovation ventures and improving the level of green innovation in the context of digitalization.

Digital finance, government intervention, and carbon emission efficiency in China

In accordance with the "dual carbon" objective, China is required to effectively pursue economic expansion and environmental preservation while concurrently enhancing carbon emission efficiency (CEE). This study examines the influence of digital finance on CEE and evaluates the moderating effect of government intervention. The analysis uses panel data collected from 282 cities in China at the prefecture level and above, spanning the period from 2011 to 2021. The findings indicate the following: (1) CEE in China is relatively low, and there are notable regional disparities. Specifically, there is a discernible downward trend in CEE throughout the eastern, central, and western areas. (2) In general, the implementation of digital finance has the potential to enhance the efficiency of carbon emissions. The observed effect is significant in the eastern and central regions but not in the western region. (3) Government subsidies have the potential to amplify digital finance's impact on CEE in the eastern region. Conversely, in the central and western regions, its influence can be increased by environmental regulations. Based on these findings, this study presents recommendations for advancing digital finance, enhancing the targeting and assessment of government subsidies, refining environmental regulations, and encouraging the adoption of green technologies.

Green innovations and environmentally friendly technologies: examining the role of digital finance on green technology innovation

The digital finance created by technological empowerment has a significant impact on the inventive behavior of micro-enterprises. This paper uses a correlation analysis that combines the fixed effect model (FE) and the panel threshold model (PTM) to evaluate the impact of digital financing on the quantity and quality of innovation in green technology. In addition, its process is dissected in this work with respect to resource limitations and financial expenditures. The empirical evidence demonstrates that the use of digital financing considerably increases both the rate and quality of innovation in environmentally friendly technologies. Further, the effect of user engagement on green innovation is dynamically overlaid and accumulates over time, as opposed to the coverage of digital finance and digital services. In terms of ownership, growth cycle, and company size, digital finance may assist remedy the misallocation of financial resources and further drive inclusive green innovation. Based on the examination of underlying mechanisms, it is clear that digital finance may play a significant role in fostering innovation in environmentally friendly technologies by easing financial limitations and decreasing associated costs. Depending on the context, "quantitative change before qualitative change" describes the dynamic development process of green innovation fueled by digital finance. This paper proposes that the combination of technological innovation and digital financial services should focus on establishing an inclusive digital financial service system, fostering diverse financial forms, and enhancing the market environment for digital financial services.

Nonlinear impact of digital economy on carbon intensity: the moderating role of low-carbon regulation

The development of the digital economy is an effective way to mitigate the carbon emission problem in the broader setting of the significant data era and green development. Based on the panel data of 271 cities in China from 2011 to 2019, this paper constructs a bidirectional fixed model to analyze the nonlinear effect of the digital economy (DE) on carbon intensity (CI) and the moderating role of low-carbon regulation from theoretical and empirical perspectives. The results show that (1) DE has an enormous inverted U-shaped impact on CI. The findings remain after introducing instrumental variables to mitigate endogeneity and robustness tests. (2) Low-carbon regulation (CP) can strengthen the inverted U-shaped impact between the two and shift the inflection point to the left. (3) Heterogeneity analysis shows that the inverted U-shaped effect of DE on CI is more significant in the central and western regions, high human capital (HC) regions, and high urbanization regions. (4) The mediating effect of energy mix (EM) and green technology innovation (GTI) still hold after introducing instrumental variables to alleviate the endogenous effect of the intermediary effect. This study suggests that the adoption of carbon emission reduction strategies, which will more effectively lower carbon intensity CI, should go hand in hand with the development of DE.

Uncovering the asymmetric impacts of economic policy uncertainty on green financial markets in China

Green finance is considered a novel tool of financing to promote the development of the green economy, which has huge investment attractiveness. Previous studies detected the impacts of economic policy uncertainty (EPU) on the green financial markets are mixed. To this end, this study deeply investigates the asymmetric and heterogeneous impacts of EPU on the green bond and green stock markets based on the quantile-on-quantile (QQ) method. Using the data of China Economic Policy Uncertainty Index (CNEPU) and green financial indices, we get some interesting results. (1) EPU has an overall negative effect on the green financial markets, and the green stock market reacts more strongly than the green bond market. (2) For green bond market, the higher quantiles of EPU on a bear market have more significant effect than that on a bull market. (3) For green stock market, a negative effect of EPU on green stock market is observed for the lower quantiles of EPU, while a positive effect is noted at the highest quantiles of EPU. This paper could provide a reference for investors making green investment strategies and for policymakers making policies to promote green development.

The impacts of economic policy uncertainty on firm cash holding in China

Cash holding is an important strategic decision of enterprises. As a macro-level factor, economic policy uncertainty causes risks, affecting enterprises' cash holdings. Taking the quarterly financial data of China's A-share non-financial listed firms for 2010-2020 as a sample, this study adopts the OLS and fixed effect models to investigate how corporate cash holdings are affected by economic policy uncertainty. The findings indicate that economic policy uncertainty is directly proportional to the level of cash that listed corporations hold. The higher the uncertainty, the more cash the company holds. Among them, state-owned enterprises and the manufacturing industry are more significantly affected by economic policy uncertainty. Finally, considering the regional marketization level and the differences in financing constraints enterprises face, it is concluded through grouping empirical studies that enterprises located in regions with lower marketization levels are more susceptible to policy uncertainty, while financially constrained enterprises are more susceptible to economic policy uncertainty. The study of economic policy uncertainty is helpful to guide enterprises to realize the importance of coping strategies in advance under the background of intensifying economic policy uncertainty. Therefore, this paper proposes to introduce policies on the premise of fully considering the smoothness of the economy and the differences in the conditions of firms of different natures, as well as some proposals to alleviate financing constraints, reduce the adverse effects of uncertainty on firms, and bolster the marketization process.

Bipolar neutrosophic WINGS for green technology innovation

Green technology innovation is a crucial assurance of achieving sustainable economic and environmental development, so improving the capability of green technology innovation is an urgent problem. In order to provide a more objective and accurate tool for identifying the most important impact factor of green technology innovation, this study innovatively proposes a new method by combining the bipolar neutrosophic sets with Weighted Influence Nonlinear Gauge System (WINGS) method. Furthermore, this paper intends to provide recommendations in improving green technology innovation capability. We invite five experts to evaluate fifteen factors influencing green technology innovation using the bipolar neutrosophic linguistic variables. Then, the proposed bipolar neutrosophic set WINGS (Bipolar NS-WINGS) method is applied to measure the influence of each impact factor of green technology innovation. Finally, we divide all the factors into cause group and effect group. Moreover, the network relation map is constructed to visualize the interrelationships between all impact factors. The Bipolar NS-WINGS suggests that Science and Technology Innovation Environment (Ω7) is the most important factor of green technology innovation. The result also indicates that R&D Investment (Ω8) is the most influential factor in which it has impacted many other factors. It is obvious that the integrated method not only enriches the research in the field of decision theory, which has not combined the bipolar-NS and WINGS method for analyzing relationships of factors, but also contributes to the improvement of green technology innovation capabilities.

Do environmental taxes, environmental innovation, and energy resources matter for environmental sustainability: Evidence of five sustainable economies

This study explores the relationship between environmental taxation, environmental technologies, energy resources, and consumption-based carbon emissions in five leading green economies from 2000 to 2019. The study applied the Cross-Sectional Auto-Regressive Distributed Lag (CS-ARDL) model to derive benchmark results, with Augmented Mean Group (AMG) and Common Correlated Effect Mean Group (CCEMG) techniques being utilized for conducting robustness analyses. The empirical findings suggest that environmental taxation, environmental innovations, and the consumption of renewable energy are associated with a reduction in consumption-based carbon emissions, thereby contributing to enhanced environmental sustainability. Conversely, the utilization of non-renewable energy is linked to an increase in consumption-based carbon emissions. These results align with the objectives outlined in the Sustainable Development Goals' 2030 agenda, particularly SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), and SDG 13 (Climate Action), offering valuable policy implications.

Can financial technology development reduce household energy consumption? Evidence from China

This paper examines whether financial technology (FinTech) development affect household energy consumption. The proposed point that FinTech can reduce household energy consumption is theoretically discussed and empirically tested using data from the 2017 Digital Financial Inclusion Index, the 2018 China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), the 2018 China Environmental Statistical Yearbook and the 2018 China Science and Technology Statistical Yearbook. The results show that FinTech contributes to reducing household energy consumption. Several retests, including the instrumental variable, replacement sample and propensity score matching methods, prove its robustness. Mechanism tests show that investment in environmental governance and technological innovation promotion are the two main transmission channels. We also find that the reducing effect is more significant in the following groups: the low-middle income level classes, the eastern regional residents, those with bachelor's degrees and above, the those aged over 60 and rural residents. The outcomes of this paper call for government departments to positively guide FinTech development to reduce household energy consumption. From another perspective, the conclusions drawn from our analysis make a great reference value for countries and provide new ideas for Chinese carbon peaking and carbon neutralisation goals.

Effect of digital inclusive finance on environmental efficiency of Chinese industry

China's industrial economic model of high emissions and low efficiency has caused a series of environmental problems. Improving energy efficiency is an inevitable choice to solve the dual dilemma of pollution and energy shortage and to achieve carbon peak and neutrality. It is difficult to achieve green development solely through traditional governance; therefore, digital inclusive finance (DIF) is considered a new measure to help the green transformation of China's industry. Based on the assessment of industrial environmental efficiency (IEE) of 30 provinces from 2011 to 2021 by combining the super-efficiency EBM model and the group frontier technology considering provincial heterogeneity, the paper investigates the impact of DIF on the environmental efficiency of Chinese industry and its internal mechanism. The results show that DIF has a driving effect on industrial green transformation, especially the deep development of DIF, which can play a positive role in environmental efficiency for a long time and can give full play to the targeting feature of big data, focusing on regions with serious pollution, financing difficulties, high natural resource, and poor financial endowment. DIF can reduce enterprise financing costs and drive industrial innovation; however, the path of promoting industrial green transformation through regional servitization needs to be improved. In addition, under appropriate regulatory constraints, DIF has a more positive driving effect on the environmental efficiency of the Chinese industry. This article is useful to address the issue of industrial green transformation by interdisciplinary research.

Fostering sustainability: unveiling the impact of Internet development on carbon emissions in China

The rapid development of the Internet has significantly impacted various socio-economic activities. Using Chinese Industrial Enterprise database and Industrial Enterprise Pollution database, this research examines the impact and mechanisms of Internet development on CO2 emissions. The key findings are as follows: (1) Internet development has substantially reduced the CO2 intensity of enterprises, and this conclusion remains robust even after performing a series of robustness analyses. (2) The major mechanisms responsible for the reduction in CO2 emissions are productivity improvement, technological innovation, and energy structure adjustment. (3) The analysis of heterogeneity reveals that the effect of Internet development on CO2 reduction is more pronounced in coastal areas, areas with a high share of secondary industry, low-carbon industries, clean industries, small-scale enterprises, and export enterprises. This study provides empirical evidence supporting China's "Internet+" strategy and its progress towards achieving the "Carbon Peaking and Carbon Neutrality Goals."

Evaluation of coupling coordination development between digital economy and green finance: Evidence from 30 provinces in China

The convergence of China's digital economy and green finance holds great significance for fostering a sustainable and high-quality developmental path. However, existing studies have not explored the coupling coordination development between these two crucial subsystems. To bridge this gap, this paper employs a modified coupling coordination degree (CCD) model to assess and affirm the coupling coordination degree between the digital economy and green finance across 30 provinces in China from 2015-2021. Based on degree results, provinces are classified into three clusters by using K-means and hierarchical clustering algorithm. Our findings unveil that the current level of coupling coordination development in China is at a primary coordination stage. Although regional disparities significantly exist, the overall level of coordination remains steadily increasing, with the eastern region outperforming the western region. Additionally, we determine that the COVID-19 pandemic's disruption on the coupling coordination development of these systems has been limited. This research sheds light on the evolution of coupling systems and offers practical recommendations for strengthening the coordinated development of the digital economy and green finance.

How does digital finance affect sustainable economic growth? Evidence from China

Digital finance is an innovative financial model of great significance for sustainable economic growth. By constructing indicators of sustainable economic growth, we explore the impact of digital finance on sustainable economic growth using the fixed effect model, mediating effect model, threshold regression model, and dynamic spatial Dubin model. The study finds that digital finance can drive sustainable economic growth, and the robustness and endogenous treatment results strongly verify this. Digital finance promotes sustainable growth mainly through technological innovation. In addition, with technological innovation and the development of renewable energy, there is a significant nonlinear relationship between digital finance and sustainable economic growth. Finally, the spatial spillover effect results show that digital finance's impact on sustainable economic growth has a positive effect, whether it is a direct effect or an indirect effect. This article provides possible ideas for digital finance to promote sustainable economic growth.

How digital finance promotes renewable energy consumption in China?

This study uses a quantitative methodology to investigate how the rise of digital money has affected efforts to increase green energy use in China. This work contributes to the body of knowledge by using a number of empirical methods, such as regression analysis, parametric quantile estimation, stability diagnostic tests, and sensitivity analysis. This study's results further demonstrate the importance of digital financing in easing the adoption of renewable energy sources throughout China. Financing alternatives for renewable energy projects have increased as a result of digital finance's integration of digital technology with financial services. A wider range of investors has been attracted through crowdfunding, peer-to-peer lending, and other alternative financing models made possible by digital platforms, allowing the development of small and medium-sized renewable energy projects that may have had trouble securing funding through more traditional channels. The impact of digital finance on energy management and optimization is also investigated. As a result, renewable energy sources have been more widely adopted due to increased energy efficiency, better grid integration, and more efficient energy delivery. This study presents substantial evidence of the beneficial benefits of digital finance on renewable energy use in China using rigorous empirical methodologies such as regression analysis, parametric quantile estimation, stability diagnostic tests, and sensitivity analysis. The results highlight the significance of using digital money to boost the use of renewable energy, lessen reliance on fossil fuels, and help create a greener, more sustainable future.

The impact of using community home-based elderly care services on older adults' self-reported health: fresh evidence from China

Background

The rapid population aging in China, characterized by a higher prevalence of illnesses, earlier onset of diseases, and longer durations of living with ailments, substantially engenders challenges within the domain of older adults' healthcare. Community home-based elderly care services (CHECS) are a feasible solution to solve the problem of older adults' care and protect older adults' health. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship, heterogeneity effects and influential mechanisms between older adults' use of CHECS and their self- reported health.

Methods

The study employs the Instrumental Variable technique and empirically investigates the relationship, heterogeneity effects and influential mechanisms between older adults using CHECS and their self-reported health using data from the China Longitudinal Aging Social Survey from 2018.

Results

The findings indicate, firstly, that using CHECS considerably improves older adults' self-reported health. Secondly, the heterogeneity test reveals that the effect is more pronounced for older adults who are under the age of 80, have functional disabilities, are free of chronic diseases, have never attended school, reside in lower-income households, are single, rarely interact with their children, and live in central urban or city/county regions. Thirdly, the mechanism test reveals that the "social network effect" and "family care effect" are the key influence channels of using CHECS.

Conclusion

An empirical foundation for the policy reform of community home-based care for seniors is provided by this study with the limitations to discuss the other socioeconomic aspects such as government health expenditure and discuss the specific services aspects such as health care. The findings carry substantial implications for improving the health of older individuals and provide suggestions for establishing a socialized aged care system in China.

Can digital inclusive finance promote agricultural green development?

Digital inclusive finance (DIF) provides new momentum for green agricultural development (AGD). This paper measured AGD with entropy weight TOPSIS in five dimensions, including resource conservation, environmental friendliness, ecological conservation, green supply, and economic growth. After that, it estimated the regional spillover effects and threshold impacts of DIF on AGD utilizing China's provincial panel data from 2011 to 2020. The paper shows that (1) DIF and AGD have such a U-shaped complex interrelationship; (2) the AGD is spatially impacted by DIF. The unique manifestation is that as DIF has increased, its effect on AGD has steadily changed from being direct to being indirect, and this effect has regional heterogeneity; and (3) in regions with higher levels of green technology innovation, better development of traditional finance, or relatively concentrated agricultural industries, DIF plays a more prominent role in promoting the AGD.

Environmental law, environmental policy stringency, and development of environmental technologies in China

China's fast industrialization and economic expansion has led to environmental degradation, prompting the government to implement a slew of environmental regulations and laws. This article examines how China's stringent environmental policies and legislation have impacted the development of environmental technology. The study's panel of Chinese companies confirmed that more stringent regulations really spurred innovation in green technology. This research lends credence to the premise that stricter environmental regulations are helpful in inspiring the development of cleaner technology that may help mitigate environmental issues. Research also shows that tighter environmental legislation increases environmental policy's effect on technological development. According to these results, environmental law may improve the efficiency of environmental policy by providing a hospitable framework for the application of technological innovation. The findings of this research have significant implications for Chinese policymakers committed to fostering sustainable development. The need of rigorous environmental rules to support comprehensive environmental policies that promote the development of greener technology is emphasized. The results shed even more light on how crucial it is to enforce environmental laws in order to ensure that environmental policies are effectively implemented. In essence, this study contributes to the expanding body of knowledge on the link between environmental policy and technical advancement by illuminating the potential for China's environmental policy and law to work together to encourage sustainable development. China's investment in green tech research and development may mitigate the environmental damage caused by its rapid economic growth.

Digital finance and regional green innovation: the perspective of environmental regulation

The relationship between digital finance and regional green innovation has been partially confirmed, yet the role of environmental regulation in it remains unexplored. Therefore, this paper examines the impact of digital finance on regional green innovation and tests the moderating role of environmental regulation using Chinese city-level data from 2011 to 2019 as a research sample. The results show that digital finance can significantly promote regional green innovation by alleviating regional financing constraints and increasing regional R&D investment. Besides, digital finance has apparent regional difference effects (the contribution of digital finance to regional green innovation is greater in eastern China than in western China, and the development of digital finance in neighbouring regions has a negative transmission effect on local green innovation). Finally, environmental regulation positively moderates the relationship between digital finance and regional green innovation. This paper explores the relationship between digital finance and regional green innovation from the perspective of environmental regulation, providing empirical evidence to promote regional green innovation.

The impact of green innovation initiatives on competitiveness and financial performance of the land transport industry

The transportation sector is one of the primary contributors to greenhouse gas emissions that have deteriorating effects on the state of the environment. The implementation of sustainable practices has become one of the most challenging tasks of organizations at present. This study examined the effect of implementing green innovation initiatives on a firm's competitiveness and financial performance of motor vehicle companies in the Philippines. Data were gathered through an online survey questionnaire with a total of 206 respondents composed of employees of various ranks working in companies engaged in the manufacture, distribution, retail, and service of motor vehicles. The theoretical framework presented a hierarchical latent variable model which was validated using the partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The model fit, measurement, general construct fit, discriminant validity, and structural model parameters were examined and found to have acceptable values. The findings indicated that environmental regulations, market demand, government pressure, competitor pressure, corporate social responsibility, and employee conduct were the significant drivers of green innovation initiatives. The study also revealed that the implementation of green innovation initiatives positively affects the firm's competitiveness and financial performance. Motor vehicle companies and other types of organizations are encouraged to demonstrate not only their concern for society or community but also their concern for the environment to acquire better market leverage and financial position.

Evaluation of China's provincial digital economy development level and its coupling coordination relationship

Based on the Office for National Statistics' delineation of the scope of the digital economy industry, this paper selects indicators from five industrial dimensions: digital product manufacturing, digital product service, digital technology application, digital factor drive and digital efficiency improvement, and constructs an evaluation system to measure the development level of China's digital economy at the provincial level. It is found that there is a wide gap in the development of China's provincial digital economy, with the eastern coastal provinces and cities having a high level of digital economy development. The coupling and coordination model was then applied to examine the interrelationships between the five industrial dimensions of the digital economy, and it was found that most of the coupling and coordination relationships of the five industrial dimensions are at the stage of medium-high coupling and low coupling and coordination, and each province and city has different coupling and coordination characteristics. The numerical evaluation results provide an intuitive understanding of the differences and deficiencies in the development of the digital economy in different regions, and serve as a reference for the medium and long-term digital economy development planning of provinces and municipalities as well as the whole country. In the future, the state should invest more in the digital economy in the central and western regions, and each province should cultivate and develop the digital economy in accordance with its own local conditions.

How does coordinated regional digital economy development improve air quality? New evidence from the spatial simultaneous equation analysis

Countries around the world are increasingly turning towards developing digital economies to find better strategies for tackling the environmental pollution associated with economic growth while also pursuing high-quality economic conditions. This study aims to probe the link between coordinated regional digital economy development (RDEC) and air quality. A province-level RDEC indicator based on city-level data is developed, and air pollution is gauged by annual average PM_2.5 concentrations. Furthermore, a spatial simultaneous equation model is employed to examine the causality further. The empirical results indicate that a bilateral causal relationship exists: RDEC improves air quality, and better air quality also facilitates RDEC. This relationship is influenced by spatial spillover effects. Specifically, air quality and RDEC of an area have a negative influence on the RDEC of neighboring regions, while they have a positive impact on neighboring areas' air quality. Further analysis suggests that green total factor productivity, advanced industrial structure, and regional entrepreneurship level can indirectly affect the contribution of RDEC to air quality. Additionally, the impact of air quality on RDEC may be realized through the increase in labor productivity, lower external environmental costs of regional economic development, and enhanced regional foreign economic exchange.

Influences of the ongoing digital transformation of the Chinese Economy on innovation of sustainable green technologies

Green technology innovation (GI) is a key factor in reconciling environmental protection with sustainable economic development. Routinely, GI in private companies have been delayed due to suspicious of pitfalls investments, which result in low return rates. Nevertheless, the digital transformation of Nations' Economies (DE) might be sustainably sound in terms of natural resources demands and environmental pollution. Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Enterprises (ECEPEs) database was analyzed from 2011 to 2019 at the municipality level to measure the effect and influence of DE on GI in Chinese ECEPEs. The results suggest that DE has a significant positive influence on GI of ECEPEs. Moreover, the influencing mechanism statistical tests reveal that DE can promote GI of ECEPEs by improving internal controls and financing opportunities. Heterogeneous statistical analysis, however, indicates that the promotion of DE on GI might be constrained over the country. In general, DE can promote both high- and low-quality GI but preferably the latter.

Firms' digitalization in manufacturing and the structure and direction of green innovation

Green innovation will be one of the main drivers of future economic development. In the current wave of digital transformation, there is a paucity of literature that considers how corporate digital transformation affects green innovation and the characteristics of green innovation. Based on the data of China A-share listed manufacturing companies from 2007 to 2020, we find that digital transformation significantly improves corporate green innovation. This conclusion is robust to a series of robustness tests. The mechanism analysis finds that digital transformation promotes green innovation by increasing the investment of innovation resources and reducing the cost of debt. We further find that digital transformation significantly increases the number of citations of green patents, reflecting the pursuit of "quality" of green innovation by enterprises. At the same time, digital transformation is conducive to the simultaneous improvement of "source reduction" and "end-cleaning" green innovation, reflecting the combination of different pollution governance methods at the source and end of the enterprise. Finally, digital transformation can sustainably improve the level of green innovation. Our findings provide useful insights for promoting green technology innovation in emerging markets.

How does digital finance affect green technology innovation in the polluting industry? Based on the serial two-mediator model of financing constraints and research and development (R&D) investments

This paper evaluates the importance of combining digital finance with conventional finance and information technology (IT) to bring new opportunities for green technology innovation and transformation within polluting industries. This study builds a theoretical framework "digital finance → financing constraints → R&D investment → green technology innovation" to demonstrate the causal mechanism between digital finance and firms' green innovation by using the serial two-mediator model. The study shows that digital finance could reduce financial constraints and increase R&D investments, thereby improving enterprises' green technology innovation in the long run. Moreover, based on the moderating effect model, we find that digital transformation in a polluting firm tends to strengthen the linkage between digital finance and green technology innovation through supervising the use of loans, reviewing green technology innovation projects, and reducing managers' short-sighted behaviors to avoid agency problems. Furthermore, the heterogeneity analysis shows that the effects of digital finance on green innovation are more apparent in state-owned enterprises and the regions with lower financial development and with higher financial supervision.

How does environmental regulation influence green technological innovation? Moderating effect of green finance

The main factor behind green economic development is green technology innovation (GTI). Environmental regulation and green finance (GF), as important ways to promote ecological civilization construction, run through the entire procedure of GTI. The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of heterogeneous environmental regulation on GTI and the moderating effect of GF on GTI from both theoretical and empirical perspectives, to provide useful ideas for China's economic reform path selection and environmental governance system optimization. This paper uses information from 30 provinces between 2002 and 2019, and a bidirectional fixed model was constructed. The results show that: First, regulatory environmental regulation (ER₁), legal environmental regulation (ER₂), and economic environmental regulation (ER₃) all have greatly boosted the degree of GTI in each province. Second, GF acts as a highly effective moderator between heterogeneous environmental regulation and GTI. Finally, this article investigates how GF can act as a moderator in various circumstances. The beneficial moderating effect of it is found to be more pronounced in inland areas, areas with weak spending on research and development, and areas with high energy consumption. These research results provide valuable references for accelerating the green development process in China.

How does haze pollution affect green technology innovation? A tale of the government economic and environmental target constraints

Numerous studies have revealed that developing green technology innovation is extremely important for minimizing haze pollution. However, limited by serious endogenous problems, research rarely focuses on the effect of haze pollution on green technology innovation. Based on a two-stage sequential game model including both production and government departments, this paper mathematically deduced the effect of haze pollution on green technology innovation. Then China's central heating policy is considered a natural experiment in our study to verify whether haze pollution is the key factor affecting the development of green technology innovation. The result that haze pollution significantly inhibits green technology innovation is confirmed, and this negative impact is mainly concentrated on substantive green technology innovation. Robustness tests have been performed, and the conclusion is still valid. Moreover, we find that government behavior can significantly affect their relationship. Specifically, the government's economic growth target will increase the haze pollution's ability to block the development of green technology innovation. However, if the government has a clear environmental target, their negative relationship will weaken. Based on the findings, targeted policy insights are presented in this paper.

How does digital inclusive finance affect the ecological environment? Evidence from Chinese prefecture-level cities

Digital inclusive finance (DIF) is playing an increasingly prominent role in green development. This study analyses the ecological effects generated by DIF and its mechanism of action from the perspectives of emission reduction (pollution emissions index; ERI) and efficiency gains (green total factor productivity; GTFP). Using panel data from 285 cities in China from 2011 to 2020, we empirically test the effects of DIF on ERI and GTFP. The results reveal a significant dual ecological effect of DIF in terms of ERI and GTFP, but there are differences in the various dimensions of DIF. Influenced by national policies, DIF produced more substantial ecological effects after 2015, which are more pronounced in developed eastern regions. Human capital significantly enhances the ecological effects of DIF, and human capital and industrial structure are critical paths for DIF to reduce ERI and increase GTFP. This study provides policy insights for governments to leverage digital finance tools to advance sustainable development.

Does digital finance promote the "quantity" and "quality" of green innovation? A dynamic spatial Durbin econometric analysis

Based on the panel data of 284 prefecture-level cities in China, this paper uses the dynamic spatial Durbin model to explore the impact of digital finance on green innovation from the dimensions of "quantity" and "quality." The results show that digital finance has a positive impact on both the quality and quantity of green innovation in local cities, but the development of digital finance in neighboring cities has a negative impact on the quantity and quality of green innovation in local cities, and the impact on the quality of green innovation is greater than that on the quantity of green innovation. And after a series of robustness tests, it was shown that the above conclusions are robust. In addition, digital finance can have a positive impact on green innovation mainly through industrial structure upgrading and informatization level. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the breadth of coverage and the degree of digitization are significantly related to green innovation, and digital finance has a more significant positive impact in eastern cities than in mid-western cities.

What role does digital finance play in low-carbon development? Evidence from five major urban agglomerations in China

In the epoch of the digital economy, digital finance (DF) has become an indispensable engine driving the high-quality development of the Chinese economy. The issues of how DF can be used to alleviate environmental pressure and how a long-term governance mechanism for carbon emissions reduction be formed have become particularly important. Based on the panel data of five national urban agglomerations in China from 2011 to 2020, this study utilizes the panel double fixed-effects model and chain mediation model to verify the impact mechanism of DF on carbon emissions efficiency (CEE). Some valuable findings are drawn below. First, the overall CEE of the urban agglomerations has potential for improvement, and the CEE and DF development level of each urban agglomeration have regional heterogeneity. Second, a U-shaped correlation is observed between DF and CEE. Technological innovation and industrial structure upgrading have a chain mediating effect in DF affecting CEE. In addition, the breadth and depth of DF have a notable negative impact on CEE, and the digitalization degree of DF shows a significant positive correlation with CEE. Third, the influencing factors of CEE have regional heterogeneity. Finally, this study provides relevant suggestions based on the empirical conclusions and analysis.

How does the development of digital inclusive finance in China affect green technology innovation? A theoretical mechanism study and empirical analysis

This study employed fixed effects (FE) models, difference-in-differences (DID) methods, and mediating effect (ME) models to explore the total effect, structural effect, heterogeneous characteristics, and impact mechanism of digital inclusive finance (DIF) on green technology innovation (GTI) from 2011 to 2020. We derived the following results. First, DIF can significantly improve the level of GTI, and the positive role of internet digital inclusive finance is greater than that of traditional banks, but the three dimensions of the DIF index have different impacts on such innovation. Second, the impact of DIF on GTI has a "siphon effect," which is significantly promoted in regions with stronger economic power and inhibited in those with weaker economic power. Finally, there is an influence mechanism of "digital inclusive finance → financing constraints → green technology innovation." Our findings provide evidence to establish a lasting effect mechanism for DIF to promote GTI, and they have important reference value for other countries to develop DIF.

Does digital inclusive finance affect the urban green economic efficiency? New evidence from the spatial econometric analysis of 284 cities in China

Digital inclusive finance has an essential impact on improving the urban green economy efficiency by demonstrating environmental friendliness in agglomerating factors and promoting the flow of factors. Based on the panel data of 284 cities in China from 2011 to 2020, this paper uses the super-efficiency SBM model with undesirable outputs to measure the urban green economy efficiency. Then, the fixed effect model and spatial econometric model of panel data are used to empirically test the impact of digital inclusive finance on urban green economic efficiency and its spatial spillover effect, and the heterogeneity analysis is carried out. This paper draws the following conclusions. (1) The average value of urban green economic efficiency of 284 Chinese cities from 2011 to 2020 is 0.5916, showing a "high in the east and low in the west." In terms of time, it showed a rising trend year by year. (2) Digital financial inclusion and urban green economy efficiency have a high spatial correlation, both showing "high-high" and "low-low" agglomeration characteristics. (3) Digital inclusive finance significantly impacts urban green economic efficiency, especially in the eastern region. (4) The impact of digital inclusive finance on urban green economic efficiency has a spatial spillover effect. In the eastern and central regions, digital inclusive finance will inhibit the improvement of urban green economic efficiency in adjacent cities. In contrast, it will promote urban green economy efficiency in the western regions in adjacent cities. (5) The coverage and depth of digital inclusive finance significantly affect the urban green economy efficiency, while the level of digitization has yet to show a significant effect. This paper puts forward some suggestions and references for promoting the coordinated development of digital inclusive finance in various regions and improving urban green economic efficiency.

Implementation effect of China's green finance pilot policy based on synthetic control method: a green innovation perspective

In order to develop green finance and realize the coordinated development of the environment and economy, China established green finance reform and innovation pilot zones in 2017. Green innovation has problems such as low financing utilization rate and lack of market competitiveness. The green finance pilot policies (GFPP) based on government management provide solutions to these problems. It is of great significance to measure and provide feedback on the implementation effect of GFPP in China for policy-making and green development. This article focuses on the influence of the construction of GFPP by using the five pilot zones as the study area and constructs the green innovation level indicator. Based on the synthetic control method, it chooses provinces that do not carry out the pilot policy as a control group. After that, assign weights to the control region to fit a synthetic control group with resembling characteristics to simulate the five pilot provinces without implementing the policy. Then, compare it with its current policy effect and highlight the policy implementation effect on green innovation. The placebo test and robustness test were conducted to prove the reliability of the conclusions. The results show that since the implementation of GFPP, the level of green innovation in the five pilot cities has shown an overall rising trend. Furthermore, we found that the balance of credit and investment in science and technology has a negative moderating effect on the implementation of GFPP, while the per capita GDP has a significant positive moderating effect.

Quantifying an influence of green credit on digital technology innovation: financial perspective of a China's case study

This paper examines the impact of green credit (GC) on digital technology innovation based on Chinese enterprises using panel data from 1990 to 2016. The study collected panel data from the 40 Chinese firms listed on the Beijing and Wuhan stock markets. Manufacturing companies were selected because they mainly contribute to green credit from pre- and post-policy periods. First, in the "two high and one surplus" sectors, the application of China's Green Credit 2012 could significantly increase total factor digital technology innovation by 1.21%. Results show a considerable drop in the variable values of digital technology innovation, 61.3%; green credit policy, 10.45%; leverage, 21.0%; and green innovation, 85.4%. The results of the absolute value of standard error after matching is much lower than 20.0%, demonstrating that the variable features of the two sets of samples are similar. In conclusion, GC's impact on the FDI of capital was asymmetrical, reflecting various impacts on businesses with various types of property rights and sizes.

The effect of economic growth pressure on green technology innovation: Do environmental regulation, government support, and financial development matter?

Green technology improvement is critical in promoting green development and mitigating negative externalities. Exploring the effect of economic growth pressure (EGP) on green technology innovation (GTI) is important for coordinated economic growth and green transformation. Using the data from 285 cities in China during 2006-2018, this study investigates the influence of EGP on GTI by taking the difference between economic growth target and previous year's actual growth rate to represent the EGP. The results indicate that EGP negatively affects GTI. When there is a 1% increase in EGP, green patent applications will fall by 3.2%. Furthermore, the heterogeneity analysis indicates that the negative effect of EGP is especially significant in western China compared with eastern and central regions. In addition, we find various nonlinear moderating effects between EGP and GTI by using panel threshold model. Specifically, EGP and GTI show an inverted U-shaped relationship with EGP increasing. Meanwhile, only when environmental regulation, government support, and financial development cross the thresholds will EGP have a significant role in promoting GTI. This study provides helpful implications for decision-makers to adopt a more reasonable combination of policy tools to achieve economic growth targets and low-carbon transformation.

The Theoretical Lineage and Evolutionary Logic of Research on the Environmental Behavior of Family Firms: A Literature Review

Family firms research is becoming one of the most important and promising areas for theoretical innovation in management practice. Corporate environmental behavior has attracted widespread academic attention, but the research on the environmental behavior of family firms is obviously insufficient, and the relevant research results are still in a fragmented state. In this paper, we review and summarize the existing research on the environmental behavior of family firms from three aspects: the research dimensions, the influencing factors, and the influencing effects, and try to sort out the theoretical lineage and evolutionary logic of the environmental behavior of family firms. From the existing research results, the research on the influencing factors and effects of family firms' environmental behavior is at the stage of strife, and there is a lack of in-depth and systematic research on the mechanisms affecting the environmental behavior of family firms and the changes of their effects. In the future, we can explore how to apply or integrate multiple theories simultaneously for complementary explanations, so as to provide a reference for the government to formulate targeted policies to stimulate and regulate the environmental behaviors of family firms.