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How Does the Digital Economy Affect Carbon Emission Efficiency? Evidence from Energy Consumption and Industrial Value Chain

Author

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  • Kangni Lyu

    (School of Economics and Management, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China)

  • Shuwang Yang

    (School of Economics and Management, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China)

  • Kun Zheng

    (School of Economics and Management, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China)

  • Yao Zhang

    (School of Economics and Management, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China)

Abstract

China is confronted with the dual constraints of economic transformation and carbon emission reduction. As the digital economy is a key force in promoting economic transformation and optimizing industrial structure, it is crucial to analyze the digital economy’s impact on carbon emission reduction from the perspective of energy consumption and industrial value chain implications. We selected data from 251 prefecture-level cities and above in China from 2011 to 2019 as research samples, measured the development level of the digital economy using the entropy value method, and constructed relevant regression models based on two-way fixed effects, intermediary analysis, and moderation analysis. The research reveals that: (1) The digital economy has a significant contribution to carbon emission efficiency, and there are significant regional heterogeneity and city size differences; (2) The digital economy can improve carbon emission efficiency by reducing energy consumption. (3) From a value chain perspective, industrial structure rationalization weakens the carbon emission efficiency improvement effect of the digital economy to a certain extent, whereas industrial structure upgrading obviously enhances the carbon efficiency improvement effect of the digital economy. The above findings enrich the research in the field of digital economy and environmental governance, contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms by which the digital economy affects the carbon emission efficiency, as well as provide policy implications for enhancing the use of the digital economy in the regional energy consumption and industrial value chain.

Suggested Citation

  • Kangni Lyu & Shuwang Yang & Kun Zheng & Yao Zhang, 2023. "How Does the Digital Economy Affect Carbon Emission Efficiency? Evidence from Energy Consumption and Industrial Value Chain," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(2), pages 1-20, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:16:y:2023:i:2:p:761-:d:1029801
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