IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/streco/v72y2025icp360-373.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Does digital infrastructure exacerbate income inequality? Evidence from the Broadband China Strategy

Author

Listed:
  • Liang, Dong
  • Liu, Yu
  • Zhou, Meifang
  • Zhao, Luben
  • Li, Xinbei

Abstract

As an important initiative to advance digital infrastructure, implementing the Broadband China Strategy (BCS) has substantially impacted urban income inequality. This paper employs a staggered difference-in-differences model to examine the effects of BCS on income inequality, revealing a 1.95 % decrease in income inequality in pilot cities compared to non-pilot cities. The mechanism analysis indicates that the BCS affects income inequality through skill-biased technical progress and shifts in the labor skill structure, with the latter playing a dominant role. Heterogeneity analysis indicates the reduction in income inequality is more pronounced in eastern regions, large cities, non-resource-based economies, newer industrial bases, as well as cities experiencing low-skill-biased technical progress and rapid updates to labor skill structures. Additionally, a spatial Durbin model further identifies the significant spatial spillover effects of the BCS on income inequality.

Suggested Citation

  • Liang, Dong & Liu, Yu & Zhou, Meifang & Zhao, Luben & Li, Xinbei, 2025. "Does digital infrastructure exacerbate income inequality? Evidence from the Broadband China Strategy," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 360-373.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:streco:v:72:y:2025:i:c:p:360-373
    DOI: 10.1016/j.strueco.2024.12.002
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0954349X24001796
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.strueco.2024.12.002?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Pengju Liu & Yitong Zhang & Shengqi Zhou, 2023. "Has Digital Financial Inclusion Narrowed the Urban–Rural Income Gap? A Study of the Spatial Influence Mechanism Based on Data from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-20, February.
    2. Jacobson, Louis S & LaLonde, Robert J & Sullivan, Daniel G, 1993. "Earnings Losses of Displaced Workers," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 83(4), pages 685-709, September.
    3. Louis S. Jacobson & Robert J. LaLonde & Daniel G. Sullivan, 1993. "Long-term earnings losses of high-seniority displaced workers," Economic Perspectives, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, vol. 17(Nov), pages 2-20.
    4. Daron Acemoglu & Pascual Restrepo, 2019. "Automation and New Tasks: How Technology Displaces and Reinstates Labor," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 33(2), pages 3-30, Spring.
    5. Rizwan Mushtaq & Catherine Bruneau, 2019. "Microfinance, financial inclusion and ICT: Implications for poverty and inequality," Post-Print hal-03452826, HAL.
    6. Liu, Jun & Chang, Huihong & Forrest, Jeffrey Yi-Lin & Yang, Baohua, 2020. "Influence of artificial intelligence on technological innovation: Evidence from the panel data of china's manufacturing sectors," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    7. Joshua D. Angrist & Jörn-Steffen Pischke, 2009. "Mostly Harmless Econometrics: An Empiricist's Companion," Economics Books, Princeton University Press, edition 1, number 8769.
    8. Kami Richmond & Russell E. Triplett, 2018. "ICT and income inequality: a cross-national perspective," International Review of Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 32(2), pages 195-214, March.
    9. David H. Autor & David Dorn & Gordon H. Hanson, 2015. "Untangling Trade and Technology: Evidence from Local Labour Markets," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 0(584), pages 621-646, May.
    10. Fare, Rolf & Shawna Grosskopf & Mary Norris & Zhongyang Zhang, 1994. "Productivity Growth, Technical Progress, and Efficiency Change in Industrialized Countries," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 84(1), pages 66-83, March.
    11. Daron Acemoglu & Pascual Restrepo, 2018. "The Race between Man and Machine: Implications of Technology for Growth, Factor Shares, and Employment," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 108(6), pages 1488-1542, June.
    12. Lu, Yi & Tao, Zhigang & Zhu, Lianming, 2017. "Identifying FDI spillovers," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 75-90.
    13. Fan, Fei & Dai, Shangze & Yang, Bo & Ke, Haiqian, 2023. "Urban density, directed technological change, and carbon intensity: An empirical study based on Chinese cities," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    14. Peter Kuhn & Hani Mansour, 2014. "Is Internet Job Search Still Ineffective?," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 124(581), pages 1213-1233, December.
    15. Li, Xing & Yang, Gang & Shao, Tihang & Yang, Dan & Liu, Zimin, 2024. "Does digital infrastructure promote individual entrepreneurship? Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment on the “Broadband China” strategy," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 206(C).
    16. J. Vernon Henderson & Adam Storeygard & David N. Weil, 2012. "Measuring Economic Growth from Outer Space," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 102(2), pages 994-1028, April.
    17. Qiao Wen, 2022. "Trends in College–High School Wage Differentials in China: The Role of Cohort-Specific Labor Supply Shift," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-23, December.
    18. Li, Hongbin & Li, Lei & Ma, Hong, 2022. "China's skill-biased imports," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    19. Jonas Hjort & Jonas Poulsen, 2019. "The Arrival of Fast Internet and Employment in Africa," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 109(3), pages 1032-1079, March.
    20. Antonelli, Cristiano, 2016. "Technological congruence and the economic complexity of technological change," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 15-24.
    21. Mushtaq, Rizwan & Bruneau, Catherine, 2019. "Microfinance, financial inclusion and ICT: Implications for poverty and inequality," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 59(C).
    22. Philippe Aghion, 2002. "Schumpeterian Growth Theory and the Dynamics of Income Inequality," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 70(3), pages 855-882, May.
    23. Miguel A. León-Ledesma & Peter McAdam & Alpo Willman, 2010. "Identifying the Elasticity of Substitution with Biased Technical Change," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 100(4), pages 1330-1357, September.
    24. Wang, Chong & Wang, Lei, 2024. "Does broadband infrastructure promote urban innovation? Evidence from “Broadband China” demonstration policy," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 349-362.
    25. Rizwan Mushtaq & Catherine Bruneau, 2019. "Microfinance, financial inclusion and ICT: Implications for poverty and inequality," Université Paris1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (Post-Print and Working Papers) hal-03452826, HAL.
    26. Goodman-Bacon, Andrew, 2021. "Difference-in-differences with variation in treatment timing," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 225(2), pages 254-277.
    27. Zi Hui Yin & Chang Hwan Choi, 2023. "Does digitalization contribute to lesser income inequality? Evidence from G20 countries," Information Technology for Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(1), pages 61-82, January.
    28. Li, Yutao & Zhang, Jinning & Lyu, Yanwei, 2023. "Does telecommunications infrastructure promote entrepreneurship in developing countries? Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment in China," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 106-119.
    29. Atalay, Enghin & Phongthiengtham, Phai & Sotelo, Sebastian & Tannenbaum, Daniel, 2018. "New technologies and the labor market," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 48-67.
    30. Njangang, Henri & Beleck, Alim & Tadadjeu, Sosson & Kamguia, Brice, 2022. "Do ICTs drive wealth inequality? Evidence from a dynamic panel analysis," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(2).
    31. Dandan Kong & Jing Li & Zehu Jin, 2023. "Can Digital Economy Drive Income Level Growth in the Context of Sustainable Development? Fresh Evidence from “Broadband China”," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-21, September.
    32. Roland Hodler & Paul A. Raschky, 2014. "Regional Favoritism," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 129(2), pages 995-1033.
    33. Peng, Zhuangzhuang & Dan, Ting, 2023. "Digital dividend or digital divide? Digital economy and urban-rural income inequality in China," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(9).
    34. Yang Liu & Mi Zhou, 2023. "Can rural e-commerce narrow the urban–rural income gap? Evidence from coverage of Taobao villages in China," China Agricultural Economic Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 15(3), pages 580-603, July.
    35. Qiu, Leiju & Zhong, Shunbin & Sun, Baowen, 2021. "Blessing or curse? The effect of broadband Internet on China’s inter-city income inequality," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 626-650.
    36. Zhou, Fengxiu & Wen, Huwei & Lee, Chien-Chiang, 2022. "Broadband infrastructure and export growth," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(5).
    37. Xiang Deng & Meng Guo & Yuyan Liu, 2023. "Digital economy development and the urban-rural income gap: Evidence from Chinese cities," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 18(2), pages 1-25, February.
    38. Campos-González, Jorge & Balcombe, Kelvin, 2024. "The race between education and technology in Chile and its impact on the skill premium," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    39. Li, Pei & Lu, Yi & Wang, Jin, 2016. "Does flattening government improve economic performance? Evidence from China," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 18-37.
    40. Joel Mokyr & Chris Vickers & Nicolas L. Ziebarth, 2015. "The History of Technological Anxiety and the Future of Economic Growth: Is This Time Different?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 29(3), pages 31-50, Summer.
    41. Popkova, Elena G. & De Bernardi, Paola & Tyurina, Yuliya G. & Sergi, Bruno S., 2022. "A theory of digital technology advancement to address the grand challenges of sustainable development," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    42. Yasuhiro Sato & Ken Tabata & Kazuhiro Yamamoto, 2008. "Technological progress, income inequality, and fertility," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 21(1), pages 135-157, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Njangang, Henri & Beleck, Alim & Tadadjeu, Sosson & Kamguia, Brice, 2022. "Do ICTs drive wealth inequality? Evidence from a dynamic panel analysis," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(2).
    2. Zhang, Xinchun & Sun, Murong & Liu, Jianxu & Xu, Aijia, 2024. "The nexus between industrial robot and employment in China: The effects of technology substitution and technology creation," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 202(C).
    3. Niu, Geng & Jin, XiaoShu & Wang, Qi & Zhou, Yang, 2022. "Broadband infrastructure and digital financial inclusion in rural China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    4. Henri Njangang & Alim Beleck & Sosson Tadadjeu & Brice Kamguia, 2021. "Do ICTs drive wealth inequality? Evidence from a dynamic panel analysis," Working Papers 21/057, European Xtramile Centre of African Studies (EXCAS).
    5. Henri Njangang & Alim Beleck & Sosson Tadadjeu & Brice Kamguia, 2021. "Do ICTs drive wealth inequality? Evidence from a dynamic panel analysis," Working Papers of the African Governance and Development Institute. 21/057, African Governance and Development Institute..
    6. Emmanuel Baffour Gyau & Yaya Li & Michael Appiah, 2025. "Global digital transformation: discovering the impact of digitalization on income inequality in OECD countries, the moderating role of globalization," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 58(1), pages 1-37, February.
    7. Dong, Zhanyu & Cai, Jiayi & Li, Xuchao & Luan, Mengna, 2025. "Firm-level impacts and recovery dynamics following a public health crisis: Lessons from China’s SARS experience," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    8. Goos, Maarten & Rademakers, Emilie & Röttger, Ronja, 2021. "Routine-Biased technical change: Individual-Level evidence from a plant closure," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(7).
    9. Andi Kustanto, 2024. "Bridging the Digital Gap: Analysing the Impact of ICT Diffusion on Income Inequality in Indonesia," Economic Thought journal, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences - Economic Research Institute, issue 3, pages 323-352.
    10. Ling-Yun He & Xiao-Feng Qi, 2021. "Environmental Courts, Environment and Employment: Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-16, June.
    11. Davide Antonioli & Alberto Marzucchi & Francesco Rentocchini & Simone Vannuccini, 2022. "Robot Adoption and Innovation Activities (last revised: December 2023)," Munich Papers in Political Economy 21, Munich School of Politics and Public Policy and the School of Management at the Technical University of Munich.
    12. Huang, Yuhong & Gao, Yajia, 2024. "The impact of financial technology on employment: Protection or disruption?," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 96(PA).
    13. Xinchun Zhang & Dong Liang & Shuo Zhang, 2025. "The Impact of Digital–Financial Dual Pilot Policy on Carbon Emission Efficiency: Evidence from Chinese Cities," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-31, March.
    14. Xufei Zhang & Hongsheng Fang & Lin Guo, 2023. "Corporate Endowment Insurance Fee Reduction and Employee Wages: Evidence from China," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 31(2), pages 192-222, March.
    15. Wang, Yuzhang & Wang, Shuo & Wang, Xinjie, 2025. "Green mergers and acquisitions in corporate low-carbon transition: A driving mechanism based on dual external pressures," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    16. Lee, Chien-Chiang & Lou, Runchi & Wang, Fuhao, 2023. "Digital financial inclusion and poverty alleviation: Evidence from the sustainable development of China," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 418-434.
    17. Jennifer A. Delaney & Tyler D. Kearney, 2022. "TV Networks for College Sports: Implications for Institutional Subsidies," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 63(7), pages 1158-1203, November.
    18. Zhang, Jiaping & Zhang, Huirong & Gong, Xiaomei, 2022. "Mobile payment and rural household consumption: Evidence from China," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(3).
    19. Cao, Qingfeng & Ni, Pengfei & Guo, Jing, 2025. "Broadband internet and income inequality among the floating population: Evidence from the “broadband China” strategy in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    20. Genz, Sabrina & Schnabel, Claus, 2021. "Digging into the digital divide: Workers' exposure to digitalization and its consequences for individual employment," Discussion Papers 118, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Chair of Labour and Regional Economics.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:streco:v:72:y:2025:i:c:p:360-373. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/525148 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.