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Exploring the Impact of the Digital Economy on Green Total Factor Productivity—Evidence from Chinese Cities

Author

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  • Zuoyufan Sheng

    (School of Business, The University of New South Wales, Sydney 2052, Australia)

  • Chengpeng Zhu

    (School of Finance and Economics, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China)

  • Mo Chen

    (School of Finance and Economics, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China)

Abstract

The digital economy promotes economic development, industrial upgrading, and environmental protection. In this study, we calculated green total factor productivity (GTFP) based on the SBM-DDF model and used the entropy method and principal component analysis to calculate a digital economy index. We used panel data from 282 Chinese cities to measure the driving effect of the digital economy on green total factor productivity. The study results show that the digital economy significantly increases GTFP. We then assessed the heterogeneity of this impact. We also explored the mechanisms by which the digital economy promotes green development and found that the digital economy can indirectly increase industrial production efficiency by promoting innovation in green technologies.

Suggested Citation

  • Zuoyufan Sheng & Chengpeng Zhu & Mo Chen, 2024. "Exploring the Impact of the Digital Economy on Green Total Factor Productivity—Evidence from Chinese Cities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(7), pages 1-13, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:7:p:2734-:d:1364228
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Sun, Yufei & Liu, Zhixiong, 2025. "How does climate risk impact green total factor productivity? A greening and digital synergy perspective," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 85(PD).
    2. Xinpeng Gao & Sufeng Li, 2025. "A Dynamic Evolution and Spatiotemporal Convergence Analysis of the Coordinated Development Between New Quality Productive Forces and China’s Carbon Total Factor Productivity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-28, April.
    3. Liu, Yiling & Lin, Yu-Cheng, 2025. "Converting knowledge into Productivity: The role of intellectual property empowerment and digital economy in enhancing regional new quality productivity forces - Evidence from China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    4. Dongri Han & Ke Lu & Peisen Liu, 2025. "Multiplication of number and quality rise: data elements enable low-carbon innovation," Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 12(1), pages 1-17, December.
    5. Ge, Hongyan & Yang, Xuan & Guo, Yixuan & Zhu, Junyi & Wang, Jian, 2025. "Research on the impact of cut taxes and administrative fees on green total factor productivity in China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    6. Lv, Jingyao & Zhao, Zhongxiu & Ji, Yongsheng, 2025. "Can big data aggregation help businesses save energy and reduce emissions? Quasi-natural experiment in big data comprehensive test," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 89-102.
    7. Chu, Zhaopeng & Chen, Xin & Yang, Jun, 2025. "Impact of data factor and data integration on economic development: Empirical insights from China," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(8).
    8. Lin, Yu-Cheng & Xu, Xuhong, 2025. "Intelligence-driven Growth: Exploring the dynamic impact of digital transformation on China's high-quality economic development," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).

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