A Study of the Spatial Mechanism of Financial Agglomeration Affecting Green Low-Carbon Development: Evidence from China

Abstract

China has stepped into the assertive stage of transforming the economic development mode and economic growth momentum, while green and low-carbon development is undoubtedly the way to promote high-quality economic development in the new period. As the core of modern economic growth, the spatial scale concentration of finance plays a crucial role in the development of economic transformation. In this paper, the SBM-GML production index method was used to measure the green low-carbon development level of 30 provinces in China from 2003 to 2019. It also empirically examines the impact and effect of financial agglomeration on green low-carbon development from a two-dimensional perspective of time and space using a systematic generalized matrix and a spatial dynamic panel model. At the same time, the spatial spillover effects of financial agglomeration were measured using a partial differential approach combined with the mediating effect model to reveal the path of financial agglomeration on green low-carbon development. It was found that, firstly, financial agglomeration achieves green low-carbon, and high-quality development through economic growth, industrial structure upgrading, and technological innovation improvement. It also achieves the enhancement of green, low-carbon development through the dual improvement of green technological progress and green technological efficiency. Second, financial agglomeration can enhance the green low-carbon development of neighboring regions; the positive effect of financial agglomeration has a significant positive spatial spillover. Third, the relationship between financial agglomeration and green low-carbon development shows a significant inverted U-shaped relationship, i.e., short-term promotion and long-term inhibition; at present, financial agglomeration, as a whole, has not crossed the critical value but still has a promotional effect on green low-carbon development. Finally, this article points out that in order to effectively promote green, low-carbon development, China needs to continuously promote the formation and optimization of financial agglomeration and make concerted efforts in economic growth, industrial structure upgrading, and technological progress.