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Does the Digital Economy Contribute to Low-Carbon Development? Evidence from China’s 278 Cities

Author

Listed:
  • Jiajia Zheng

    (Henan University)

  • Xiuwen Xu

    (Henan University)

Abstract

The digital economy significantly changes China’s economy and environment. Previous studies assume the unilateral effect of the digital economy on China’s low-carbon development and produce controversial conclusions. In this study, we use the panel two-tier stochastic frontier analysis, and results show that (1) the digital economy produces double-sided effects (increasing and decreasing effects) on carbon productivity between 2011 and 2021; (2) the two-sided effects and the net effect of the digital economy appear differently in provinces, regions, and city groups; (3) the sub-indicators of the digital economy show various trends along with the carbon productivity in different regions and city groups; and (4) policy implications in adjusting the various sub-indicators of the digital economy to coordinate the digital economy and low-carbon development are made accordingly.

Suggested Citation

  • Jiajia Zheng & Xiuwen Xu, 2025. "Does the Digital Economy Contribute to Low-Carbon Development? Evidence from China’s 278 Cities," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 16(2), pages 7250-7280, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jknowl:v:16:y:2025:i:2:d:10.1007_s13132-024-02123-4
    DOI: 10.1007/s13132-024-02123-4
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    References listed on IDEAS

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