2024 Vol. 39, No. 2

Special Column
Theoretical Connotation and Practical Path of the Financial Development with Chinese Characteristics
ZOU Xin-yue, ZHANG Jin-hong, ZHANG You-ze
2024, 39(2): 4-10.
Abstract:
The financial development with Chinese characteristics is the key to promoting the high-quality development of finance, realizing the goal of building a financial power and serving the Chinese modernization. It can be specifically interpreted as the road of financial internationalization, the road of financial marketization, the road of financial openness and the road of financial legalization. Efficient cooperation between the government and market is the basic development path to the construction of a financial system with Chinese characteristics. Through the financial development with Chinese characteristics, financial elements will be further generated and gathered; the allocation efficiency of financial resources will be greatly improved; the "five major articles" such as science and technology finance and green finance will be achieved in high quality; the classic "trinity paradox" will be effectively reconciled, and the solid legal protection for strong financial countries will be strengthened at a faster pace. The study of the theoretical connotation and practical path of the financial development with Chinese characteristics is helpful to effectively learn, understand and implement the action roadmap for building a strong financial country, and is also conducive to accelerating the construction of a financial knowledge system with Chinese characteristics.
Economic Theory and Exploration
Macroeconomic Uncertainty and Stock Returns: Evidence from the Chinese Stock Market
GE Ying-fan
2024, 39(2): 11-28.
Abstract:
Macrofundamental shocks are widely recognized as an important source of stock market volatility. However, there is a relative lack of research exploring their impact on stock excess returns in the Chinese market from the perspective of macroeconomic uncertainty. This paper utilizes multi-indicator data on China's macroeconomics and finance to construct an index of China's macroeconomic uncertainty from 2002 to 2022. It examines the impact of the uncertainty on the excess returns of A-share stocks. The empirical results show a significant negative premium for macroeconomic uncertainty exposure, i.e., stocks with negativemacroeconomic uncertainty betas have higher future excess returns. However, this premium varies for stocks of different equity nature, size, and industry, and is more pronounced in periods of economic downturn relative to periods of economic upturn, highlighting the heterogeneity and state-dependence of the macroeconomic uncertainty premium. This research has theoretical and practical value for understanding the impact of macroeconomic uncertainty on the stock market and constructing corresponding asset portfolios to cope with macro uncertainty shocks.
Business Environment, Tax Efforts of Local Government and Corporate Tax Compliance
TAO Dong-jie, CHEN Zheng-hong, XU Yang
2024, 39(2): 29-43.
Abstract:
The optimization of the business environment can change the game balance between the government and the market and improve the tax efforts of government and fiscal capacity. This paper constructed a "government-enterprise" two-sector Stackelberg game model as a theoretical analysis framework. Then, using China's Administrative Approval Reform as a "quasi natural experiment" for local governments to improve the business environment, matching the Chinese industrial enterprise database, this paper has investigated the causality of the relationship between improvement of the business environment and local fiscal capacity. It is found that the optimization of the business environment represented by the reform of the administrative approval system contributes to the improvement of local financial capacity, which is reflected in the significant improvement of corporate tax compliance. The effect is more pronounced in corporate under the jurisdiction of local tax bureaus, private corporate, and small-scale corporate, and proves the theoretical mechanism that the optimization of business environment affects local governments' tax efforts and then improves corporate tax compliance. The conclusions of this paper has profound policy enlightenment for improving the country's fiscal capacity from the path of improving the business environment.
Digital Economy Theory and Application
Research on the Influence of Market-based Allocation of Data Elements on the Integration of Digital Economy and Real Economy: A Quasi-natural Experiment Based on a Data Trading Platform
WANG Xiao-dan, SHI Yu-tang, LIU Da
2024, 39(2): 44-58.
Abstract:
The deep integration of the digital economy and the real economy will promote the construction of a unified large market across the country, promote the construction of a new dual-cycle development pattern, and become a new driving force for economic growth. Based on the quasi-natural experiment of data trading platform establishment, the coupling evaluation model was used to measure the integration level of digital economy and real economy in 280 prefecture-level cities in China from 2010 to 2021, and the multi-stage differential method was used to empirically test the impact of the market-based allocation of data elements characterized by the establishment of data trading platform on the log-real integration. The findings are as follows: firstly, market-based allocation of data elements significantly promotes the integration of digital economy and real economy, and this conclusion is still valid after a series of robustness tests. Mechanism analysis shows that market-based allocation of data factors affects the integration of digital economy and real economy through cost effect, factor allocation effect and technological innovation effect. The enhancement effect of log-real integration of market-based allocation of data elements is more significant for cities with higher property rights protection, higher administrative level and higher marketization degree. The expansion analysis finds that there is a spatial spillover effect of market-based allocation of data elements on the integration of digital economy and real economy. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen the construction of data trading platforms, explore multi-dimensional integration paths, tap the potential of pilot policies, strengthen exchanges and cooperation among regional subjects, optimize the market-oriented allocation of data elements, and better promote the integrated development of digital economy and real economy.
Can Industrial Robots Application Improve the Innovation Ability of Enterprises
LIANG Peng, LIANG Lin, QI Di
2024, 39(2): 59-70.
Abstract:
As a typical representative of digital technology, industrial robots have become an important alternative to traditional labor, providing enterprises with an environment of "creative destruction". Whether they can improve the innovation ability of enterprises has attracted wide attention. Based on the micro-enterprise data of China, this paper discusses the impact of industrial robot application on enterprise innovation ability and its mechanism. The findings indicate that the application of industrial robots can significantly improve the innovation ability, and effectively enhance the substantive innovation capabilities of enterprises. In addition, the mechanism test shows that the application of industrial robots can increase the demand for high-quality talents, improve the labor structure and enhance human capital, and then promote the innovation ability of enterprises, confirming the "talent gathering effect". At the same time, the upgrading of production technology brought about by the application of industrial robots will promote production efficiency, thereby improving the innovation ability, confirming the "productivity improvement effect". Further analysis shows that inlabor-intensive state-ownedenterprises with higher labor costs and higher financial risk, and those with higher external market competition, the application of industrial robots has a more significant role in promoting the innovation ability. This paper expands the researchof industrial robots andinnovation capabilities, and has certain reference significance for promoting the transformation of enterprise labor factors, improving the human capital structure, and assisting the intelligent transformation and upgrading of China's manufacturing industry.
Can Enterprise Digital Transformation Reduce Labor Cost Stickiness: An Examination Based on Internal Control
WANG Xian-bin, CHEN He
2024, 39(2): 71-87.
Abstract:
Under the tide of the global digital economy, the enterprise digital transformation has a profound impact on the operation management and cost. Based on the sample of A-share listed companies from 2010 to 2021, this paper constructs indicators of enterprise digital transformation and explores the effect of enterprise digital transformation on labor cost stickiness and its mechanism generation. It is found that digital transformation significantly reduces labor cost stickiness, and the findings remain valid after a series of robustness tests. Mechanistic analysis shows that digital transformation helps to improve the quality of internal control and thus reduces labor cost stickiness. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the effect of digital transformation on labor cost stickiness is more pronounced in non-state enterprises, declining enterprises, labor-intensive enterprises, and those in eastern and central China. Further test indicates that digital transformation has a long-term inhibitory effect on reducing labor cost stickiness in enterprises that is mainly reflected in labor stickiness rather than salary stickiness, and in ordinary employees rather than executives as well. Enterprise digital transformation can better improve labor cost and economic efficiency. The study reveals the mechanism of the impact of enterprise digital transformation on the cost disposition of the enterprise, and provides practical guidance for achieving high-quality coordinated development between the digital economy and the real economy.
Management and Corporate Performance
Entrepreneurship, Vertical Network Quality, and High-quality Development of Manufacturing Enterprises
YUAN Xi-na, LIN Xiao-qing, DING Mei-xia
2024, 39(2): 88-101.
Abstract:
The quality of vertical network relationships is one of the reliable ways for enterprises to acquire resources, and modern enterprises actively utilize vertical network relationships to achieve innovation cooperation at different levels. Using the survey data from 205 companies in Fujian Province, this study examined the impact of vertical network quality and entrepreneurship on enterprise performance and explored the moderating effect of entrepreneurship. The results show that in vertical network relationships, both upstream and downstream network quality have a significant positive impact on enterprise performance, and entrepreneurship also has a significant positive impact on enterprise performance. Moreover, enterprises with higher entrepreneurship enhance the positive impact of upstream network quality on enterprise performance while weakening the positive impact of downstream network quality on enterprise performance.These findings contribute to understanding the construction of network relationship quality in manufacturing enterprises and the complex influence of entrepreneurship in dynamic environments.
How does Corporate Cash Holdings Decision Impact the Labor Income Share
GUAN Zi-huan, ZHAO Yun-ning, LUO Wen-yi, DING Si
2024, 39(2): 102-113.
Abstract:
The rise in the labor income share is crucial to ensuring that individuals partake in the benefits of economic and social progress.In contrast to the widespread decline in labor income share globally, a phenomenon of "rising against the trend" is observed in post-financial crisis in China. Utilizing a sample of A-share listed companies in China spanning from 2007 to 2021, this paper constructed a theoretical model to explore the impact of corporate cash holding on the share of labor income from the micro perspective of corporate cash holding decisions, and analyzed the impact of financing constraints and technological innovation on the above relationships. It is found that the optimal cash holding level of enterprises has a negative impact on the share of labor income; when financing constraints are eased or technological innovation accelerates, companies' cash distribution for labor incentives will increase, and the share of labor income will consequently rise, thus intensifying the negative correlation between them. The analysis of industry heterogeneity indicates that in labor-intensive industries, higher labor costs reduce incentives for cash allocation to labor factors. Financing constraints play a significant role in lower incentives in capital-intensive industries, and inadequate labor-biased technological innovation contributes to lower incentives in technology-intensive sectors. The conclusions offer fresh empirical insights into comprehending the impact of cash holding decisions and the "mystery of the contrarian rise" of labor income share in China. Additionally, the findings prompt valuable considerations for standardizing the order of income distribution.
Green Economy and Three Rural Issues
The Organizational Logic and Governance Effect of Vertical Management Reform of Environmental Protection
CHEN Qi-bo
2024, 39(2): 114-128.
Abstract:
As an important measure of environmental management system reform in China, the environmental management system in China has been changed from territorial management to vertical management in the province. Based on the theory of control rights, the theoretical analysis framework for vertical reform of environmental protection is constructed, and the governance effect and its influencing mechanism of environmental protection vertical reform are tested by using the panel data of prefecture-level cities from 2013 to 2021 and the multi-period difference-in-difference model. It is found that the vertical reform of environmental protection has shifted the control rights of municipal and county environmental protection departments at the organizational level, giving real authority to the vertical management of the upper and lower levels within the environmental protection departments, thus improving the enforcement of environmental law at the grass-roots level and reducing regional pollutant emissions. The dynamic effect analysis shows that the pollution reduction caused by vertical reform of environmental protection has good sustainability. Further analysis shows that environmental protection reform has a significant negative regulatory effect on financial pressure and official association to promote pollutant discharge, and the control effect on border pollution is more significant. The research findings provide theoretical and empirical evidence for how to effectively divide and cooperate between local governments and environmental protection departments, and between higher and lower environmental protection departments to ensure long-term stability of environmental governance.