Table of Content

16 April 2025, Volume 45 Issue 4

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To Construct China's Independent Economics Knowledge System： An Analysis on the Hot Spots of Chinese Economics Research in 2024

Research Group on Hot Spots in Economics

2025, 45(4):  1-25. 

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In order to truly and objectively record the trajectory of economics research，help construct Chinas independent economics knowledge system，and stimulate innovative research in economics，we have summarized eleven research hotspots in the field of economics in the year 2024，based on economic literature reprinted in China Social Science Excellence（CSSE），and by widely soliciting the opinions of experts and scholars。
（1）Construction of Chinas independent economics knowledge system；（2）Research on new quality productivity forces；（3）Research on the innovationdriven role of data elements；（4）Industrial empowerment of artificial intelligence；（5）Industrial layout and development in a global perspective；（6）Highquality development of the real economy in financial services；（7）Prevention and resolution of local debt risks；（8）New round of reform of the fiscal and taxation system；（9）Research on the protection of the rights and interests of workers in the new forms of employment；（10）Design of the social security system in the process of Chinese modernization；（11）Ecological civilization construction and highquality development 
All in all，the research theme of economics in 2024 is very distinctive，which mades indepth presentations on the spirit of the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China，and provides theoretical explanation and practical support for further comprehensively deepening reforms and advancing Chinese modernization Looking ahead，we should resolutely follow the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era，adhere to the problemoriented and systematic concepts，summarize and refine the typical facts and laws，and construct Chinas independent economics knowledge system





The Theoretical Logic，Practical Focus and Policy Guidance for Accelerating the Building of the Country's Financial Strength：Also Discussing How to Construct the Independent Knowledge System for Chinese Finance

WANG Guogang, LUO Yu

2025, 45(4):  26-37. 

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Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China，General Secretary Xi Jinping has made a series of important statements on major theoretical and practical issues related to the development of Chinas financial industry，which is the fundamental guideline for accelerating the building of the countrys financial strength and the guiding ideology for constructing the independent knowledge system for Chinese finance The independent knowledge system for Chinese finance is a complete system composed of the development laws，theoretical logic，practical experience，work focus，policy guidance，and financial culture with Chinese characteristics
In theory，accelerating the building of the countrys financial strength must follow the “Eight Adherences” We should have a deep understanding of the functions of finance We must follow the path of developing Chinese characteristic finance We must adhere to the value orientation of putting the people at the center Our mission is to promote highquality economic development We must maintain the bottom line of preventing systemic financial risks
In practice，a country with financial strength must possess a series of key core financial elements，mainly including a strong currency，a strong central bank，strong financial institutions，strong international financial centers，strong financial regulation，and a strong team of financial talents
The Chinese characteristic financial system consists of six subsystems，and in order to accelerate the building of the countrys financial strength，it is necessary to accelerate the building of these subsystems 
Accelerating the building of the countrys financial strength is a complex project with a wide scope and a long duration While building six key core elements and six financial subsystems，it is also necessary to do a good job in five major areas under policy guidance：technology finance，green finance，inclusive finance，pension finance，and digital finance，and improve the ability of finance to serve highquality economic and social development
Doing these “five great articles” well not only requires great effort，perseverance，and hard work，but also requires a change of mindset and a high cost Therefore，we must adhere to the combination of rule of law and rule of virtue，vigorously promote excellent traditional Chinese culture，and actively cultivate a financial culture with Chinese characteristics





Digital Transformation of State-owned Assets Supervision and the Compliant Operation of State-owned Enterprises

LIAO Guanmin, XU Ran

2025, 45(4):  38-55. 

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The digital transformation of state-owned assets supervision represents a critical initiative to advance the modernization of China's national governance system and capacity Since stateowned enterprises have a key position in our national economy，their illegal operations will not only lead to economic compensation，reputation loss and even administrative and criminal punishment，but also affect the stability of the national economy and social order Therefore，it is of great theoretical and practical significance for the Stateowned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission(SASAC)to use digital technology to promote the innovation of regulatory model to promote the standardized operation of stateowned enterprises
Based on the staggered implementation of the “Online Supervision System for Stateowned Assets and Enterprises” across different regions nationwide as the natural experiment，this paper employs a multiperiod differenceindifferences model to examine the impact of the digital transformation of stateowned assets supervision on the misconducts of stateowned enterprises （SOEs） Using a sample of nonfinancial SOEs listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen Ashare markets from 2014 to 2022，we find that SASACs digital supervision significantly reduces the likelihood，frequency，and severity of misconduct in SOEs The effects are pronounced among SOEs distant from SASACs，with worse corporate governance，with weaker internal control and facing stringent financing constraints Additionally，we find that more investments in digital transformation enhance the efficacy of SASACs supervision in mitigating misconducts，and the digital supervision contributes to the preservation and appreciation of stateowned capital 
Compared to existing literatures，the main contributions of this paper are as follows：First，from the perspective of standardized operation of stateowned enterprises，this paper studies the impact of digital transformation on the effect of stateowned assets supervision，which is conducive to a deeper understanding of the specific mechanism of digital supervision Second，this paper examines how the digital transformation of SASACs regulatory approach affects the effectiveness of regulation and provides new evidence on how SASAC regulation can alleviate SOE agency problems Third，based on the use of emerging technologies in the regulation of stateowned enterprises，this paper provides new evidence on the factors that influence corporate misconduct
Furthermore，this study provides a scientific foundation for enhancing SASACs supervisory efficiency and offers theoretical support for the modernization of national governance





The Real Economy Effects of Digital Regulation：Evidence Based on Investment Efficiency

CHEN Yunsen, ZHANG Ying, MA Yuhang

2025, 45(4):  56-75. 

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Digital regulation is a significant innovation in the regulatory approach to building a modern capital market with Chinese characteristics，as well as an important means of external corporate governance in the digital era Exploring the real economic effects of digital regulation is crucial for preventing and defusing major risks and promoting highquality development of the real economy Using the unique research setting where the CSRC （China Securities Regulatory Commission） regional offices develop their digital regulatory systems differently，this study examines the impact of digital regulation on investment efficiency of listed companies 
Based on a sample of Ashare nonfinancial listed companies from 2014 to 2023，the study finds that：（1） Following the implementation of digital regulatory systems by regional offices，the investment efficiency of listed companies within their jurisdiction significantly improved，confirming the real economic effects of digital regulation （2） Mechanism analyses show that the improvement in information disclosure quality and internal governance are the primary channels through which digital regulation affects corporate investment efficiency （3） Heterogeneity analyses show that the effect is more prominent in companies with higher operational risks，governance risks，and stock price volatility risks （4） Further analyses indicate that digital regulation significantly enhances the sensitivity of investment to investment opportunities and also plays a crucial role in promoting corporate innovation investment （5） Moreover，the main findings remain robust when measuring digital regulation through text analysis and the FinBERT large language model，as well as from the perspective of digital talent acquisition 
The marginal contributions of this study are as follows：First，this study expands the literature on the economic consequences of digital regulation While existing literature primarily explores the impact of regulatory digitalization in specific contexts such as mergers and acquisitions or IPO reviews，its real effects remain largely overlooked This study fills that gap Second，it enriches the research on the factors influencing investment efficiency from the perspective of digital regulation，broadening the understanding of how regulation empowers the real economy Third，it not only provides critical evidence on how capital market regulation fosters highquality development in the real economy，but also offers valuable insights for implementing the directives of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China，which emphasize preventing risks，strengthening regulation，and promoting the healthy and stable development of the capital market





Digital Transformation and Relationship-based Transaction Governance: Evidence from Related Party Transactions

XIAO Tusheng1, GUO Zejing1, GENG Chunxiao2

2025, 45(4):  76-95. 

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Under the background of Chinas characteristic “relationshipbased” system，enterprises generally adopt the model of relationshipbased transactions，and its information and communication advantages reduce the transaction costs faced by both parties However，with the promotion of economic transformation and the goal of the single nationwide market，the disadvantages of relationshipbased transactions are gradually revealed，and its governance has become the focus of academic attention
On the one hand，relationshipbased transactions can only be carried out between market entities that are familiar with each other Hence，the number of market entities that can participate as well as the market size is limited On the other hand，compared with marketbased transactions，relational transactions have higher complexity and information opacity，which make it easy to become a tool for major shareholders to hollow out minority shareholders under the pyramidtype equity structure Corresponding to these two limitations，its governance issues must be considered from two aspects
Given this，this paper uses the data of Chinalisted companies from 2010 to 2023，our study examines the effect of digital transformation on the governance of relationshipbased transactions from the perspective of related party transactions The empirical results show that the digital transformation of enterprises significantly reduces the size of related party transactions，and our inferences remain unchanged after we conduct a series of robustness tests including consideration of endogeneity The analysis of mechanisms finds that the reduction effect of digital transformation on related party transactions is mainly achieved by suppressing the size limitation disadvantage and the tunneling disadvantage of related party transactions Further analysis shows that the above effects are mainly reflected in commodity related transactions，nonmarket pricing related transactions and benefittransfer related transactions，and are more obvious in the samples with stronger substitutability of related transactions
 Compared with the existing research，this paper has the following contributions： First，this paper systematically analyzes the governance logic of digital technology in terms of scale limitation and tunneling limitation respectively，and the research conclusion is conducive to comprehensively reflecting the governance ideas of relational transactions Secondly，the conclusion of this paper is conducive to exploring new ideas of relational transaction governance from the perspective of emerging momentum，to inspire the construction of a new dualcycle development pattern and the healthy development of the capital market








Does Increasing the Labor Share Promote Corporate Innovation

GU Yang, CHENG Mingwang, YANG Weiran

2025, 45(4):  96-111. 

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In recent years，as Chinas economy has entered the new normal phase，transitioning from rapid growth to highquality development This context has made it imperative to cultivate new growth drivers for sustainable economic growth Innovation serves as the core driving force for constructing modern industrial systems and developing new quality productive forces，with enterprises functioning as the microlevel entities of innovation Distinct from conventional corporate investment activities，corporate innovation requires the integration of individual human capital with organizational resources，which necessitates establishing corresponding compensation mechanisms to incentivize employees and facilitate innovation initiatives
Improving the labor share in enterprises belongs to the category of fairness，while enterprise innovation belongs to the category of efficiency Whether the two can be unified is a key topic of longterm concern in the academic community This article uses Ashare listed companies from 2007 to 2021 as the research sample，examined from a micro perspective how increasing labor share affects the innovation output of enterprises Research has found that：（1） Increasing labor share will significantly increase the innovation output of enterprises （2） Mechanism testing found that increasing labor share mainly promotes enterprise innovation through channels such as reducing agency costs and lowering employee mobility （3） Heterogeneity analysis found that the innovation promotion effect generated by increasing labor share is more pronounced in nonstateowned enterprises，firms with weaker financing constraints，and laborintensive enterprises Further analysis reveals that increasing labor share exerts significantly positive promoting effects on both invention patents and utility model patents Additionally，increasing labor share significantly boosts corporate innovation investment This study confirms from a micro perspective that fairness and efficiency can be unified，which enriched the relevant research on the socioeconomic effects of labor share，and provided empirical support for building a more fair，reasonable，and orderly pattern of factor income distribution to improve efficiency
The marginal contributions of this study are as follows：（1） By employing firmlevel data，it enriches the literature on the socioeconomic impacts of labor share from a micro perspective，while providing new insights into enhancing corporate innovation capabilities （2） The analysis framework innovatively incorporates agency cost reduction and employee mobility mitigation into the mechanism of how labor share affects corporate innovation，with empirical validation This offers concrete evidence for understanding the operational mechanisms through which labor share influences innovation Additionally，heterogeneity analyses across enterprise ownership structures，financing constraints，and per capita capital levels help elucidate the differential impacts of labor share on innovation outcomes among enterprises with varying characteristics





Knowledge Spillovers and Innovation Factor Allocation：Based on the Perspective of Innovation Network

ZHANG Yang, ZHANG Zhongwen, WEI Chu, JIANG Jincheng

2025, 45(4):  112-132. 

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In the process of promoting the new drivers of Chinesestyle modernization，the efficient allocation of innovative factors is crucial for promoting highquality innovation and enhancing the potential growth rate This paper introduces the knowledge spillover structure of innovation networks into an endogenous growth model，proposing a quantifiable framework for optimal R&D resource allocation Additionally，based on big data from patents，the paper calculates the optimal allocation of R&D resources and potential welfare gains at the industry level，offering a scientific basis for policymaking
The paper draws the following conclusions：Firstly，theoretical analysis indicates that a social planner focused on longterm growth should allocate more R&D resources to core sectors within the innovation network Secondly，the baseline results indicate that knowledge spillover significantly promote firm innovation，with specialized and innovative enterprises and nonstateowned enterprises exhibiting stronger knowledge spillover effects Thirdly，accounting based on industrylevel data suggests that more R&D resources should be allocated to strategic emerging industries such as certain manufacturing sectors，information transmission，software，and information technology services Measurements of R&D misallocation and consumer welfare gains reveal that the efficiency of R&D allocation across industries has significantly improved in recent years Moreover，compared to scenarios not embedded in the innovation network，R&D allocation within the innovation network further enhances welfare levels
Compared with existing studies，this paper makes three possible marginal contributions in three aspects：Firstly，this study introduces the dynamic network structure of knowledge spillover into an endogenous growth model，establishing a more general theoretical framework This framework reveals the mechanisms through which knowledge spillover affects firm performance，providing new theoretical support for formulating longterm and effective innovation strategies Secondly，this study empirically tests the impact of knowledge spillover on firm innovation，estimates the optimal R&D resource allocation and potential welfare gains at the industry level This practice not only validates the realworld applicability of the theoretical model but also offers new perspectives for policymakers Thirdly，by incorporating a large amount of patent data from nonlisted firms into the analysis，the study constructs a microlevel knowledge spillover indicator at the firm level This effectively captures the extent and direction of knowledge spillover among firms，significantly improving the reliability of empirical models and numerical simulations，and providing new insights into understanding knowledge interactions across different sectors





Coastal Economic Open Zone Policy，Foreign Direct Investment and Innovation

LIU Chang

2025, 45(4):  133-144. 

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The reform and openingup under the leadership of the Communist Party of China，a transformative 20thcentury event，reshaped the fate of the Chinese people and global society Openness has been pivotal to Chinas economic miracle，with the Coastal Economic Development Zone （CEDZ） policy serving as a cornerstone of its progressive，multitiered openingup strategy Established in 1985，the CEDZ policy aimed to create a “tradeindustryagriculture” structure，focusing on exportoriented industrialization and agricultural development By 1988，the State Council extended the CEDZ to 288 counties across nine coastal provinces，covering 320，000 square kilometers and 160 million people，forming a robust coastal economic belt
To boost exportoriented growth in coastal areas，China introduced targeted policies in the CEDZs，including expanded local authority over foreign direct investment （FDI） approvals，promotion of Sinoforeign ventures to modernize enterprises，decentralized trade approvals，and stricter exportprocessing oversight Foreign exchange management was optimized via revolving funds，adjusted sharing protocols，and export risk funds Infrastructure upgrades，such as improved transport and streamlined entryexit processes，further bolstered development These measures positioned CEDZs as key hubs for FDI and export growth，second only to Special Economic Zones and coastal open cities in policy support
This study leverages the 1988 expansion of the CEDZs as a natural experiment，utilizing countylevel panel data from 1985 to 1991 and a differenceindifferences （DID） strategy to examine whether the policy stimulated FDI inflows and regional innovation Empirical findings reveal that counties integrated into the CEDZs experienced significant increases in the establishment of FDI enterprises and patent grants Notably，the policys impact on innovation was more pronounced in regions with a higher concentration of technical professionals To address potential endogeneity concerns stemming from the nonrandom selection of treatment counties，a geographic regression discontinuity design （RDD） was employed along the CEDZnonCEDZ boundary The geographic RDD results corroborate the DID estimates，demonstrating the policys sustained positive effects on patent growth until Chinas accession to the World Trade Organization in 2001
This research contributes to the broader literature on Chinas economic history during the reform and openingup era By examining the longterm effects of the CEDZ policy，the study provides historical empirical evidence that underscores the importance of continued openness in fostering highlevel indigenous innovation Furthermore，it enriches academic discussions on the evaluation of placebased policies，offering insights into the mechanisms through which targeted regional development strategies can drive innovation and economic transformation





The Spatial Political Economy of Capital Flows：A Marxist Theoretical and Empirical Analysis

ZHAO Feng1, OU Mingyan1, CHEN Shuxing2

2025, 45(4):  145-166. 

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Accelerating the construction of a unified，open，and competitively ordered national market is essential for elevating Chinas highquality economic development and for integrating regional capital flows Extensive research has focused on crossborder capital mobility However，little attention has been paid to the intranational dynamics of capital flows and their effects on regional profit rates This oversight leaves a significant gap in our understanding of domestic capital allocation mechanisms
This study addresses the gap by adopting a Marxist spatial political economy perspective We develop a comprehensive theoretical framework based on the MarxLeninHarveyKrugman (MLHK) model The MLHK model is designed to capture the dynamic interplay among regional capital flows，profit rates，and economic growth within China It integrates classical Marxist theory with modern spatial economic analysis Simulation results from the model indicate that regional capital flows promote capital accumulation across diverse regions However，the average declining profit rate mechanism，a fundamental tenet of Marxist economic thought，causes the overall impact of these flows on profit rates to be negative This outcome highlights the tension between the benefits of increased capital stock and the competitive pressures that compress profit margins
Empirical analysis employing dynamic panel data methods further reveals that the impact of capital flows on regional profit rates is heterogeneous In the short term，both economically advanced and less developed regions experience negative effects on profit rates，while central regions may exhibit a positive response Over the long run，these effects are modulated by factors such as technological advancement，the scale of initial investment，and the nature of policy interventions 
The theoretical contribution of this research lies in its enhanced understanding of how domestic capital flows shape regional profit dynamics within the framework of Marxist spatial political economy Practically，the findings underscore the need for tailored regional policies that facilitate regional capital mobility while mitigating the competitive pressures that lead to profit compression In summary，by systematically examining the dynamic relationships among regional capital flows，profit rates，and economic growth，this study bridges the gap between research on international capital mobility and the relatively unexplored realm of domestic capital dynamics，offering valuable guidance for both academic inquiry and policy formulation