ABSTRACT This study employs the OECD Digital Services Trade Restrictiveness Index framework to quantify changes in digital trade costs triggered by digital trade provisions within RTAs and incorporates these changes into a trade structure model that differentiates between intermediate and final goods. It assesses the trade and welfare impacts resulting from the implementation of digital trade rules under the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans‐Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA). Unlike traditional tariff concessions, digital trade rules—once implemented by a country—apply universally, thus significantly promoting trade for both member and non‐member countries. Further decomposition reveals that the changes in trade flows are primarily driven by intermediate goods. Welfare levels have substantially improved for CPTPP and DEPA members, mainly due to the welfare gains associated with reduced digital trade costs. Non‐member countries have also seen slight welfare improvements due to the spillover effects of these digital trade rules. Should China accede to either CPTPP or DEPA, it would generate positive trade and welfare effects for member countries, with China being the primary beneficiary. Non‐member countries would also benefit, albeit to a lesser extent than members, ultimately leading to an improvement in global welfare.

ABSTRACT Irreplaceable, high‐quality exports are strategic imperatives for global supply chain competitiveness in the era of digital transformation. This paper employs an extended model of heterogeneity in firm trade theory to analyse the factors influencing export product quality. And this study empirically assesses the impact and underlying mechanisms of digital technology applications on export product quality, utilising unbalanced panel data from China's customs database and A‐share listed companies spanning from 2012 to 2015. The study finds the following. First, the implementation of digital technology greatly improves the quality of export products, and this finding is consistently supported across multiple robustness checks. Second, production efficiency and quality production capacity are intrinsic factors determining the quality of export products. Digital technology enhances production efficiency by reducing labour management and corporate financing costs and boosts quality production capacity by promoting technological innovation. These improve the quality of export products, providing empirical validation of the enabling effects of digital technology on production factors. Additionally, the impact of digital technology application on the quality of export products exhibits heterogeneity characteristics, influenced by factors such as enterprise ownership, the construction of free trade zones and the level of urban agglomeration.

ABSTRACT In the era of globalisation and digital transformation, international trade has expanded beyond traditional goods and services to include the exchange of intellectual properties (IPs), particularly technology. As intangible assets become key drivers of global economic growth, accurately valuing them remains a complex challenge due to their inherent creativity, complexity and uncertainty. This study proposes a novel framework grounded in utility theory to assess technology value within the context of international IP trade. By integrating the utility theory of value and the literature on technology and venture investment into a cohesive model, the framework captures four key attributes of technology value: utility size, quality, delivery and risk. To operationalise this framework, we introduce a valuation method that leverages artificial intelligence (AI) and big data analytics. This AI‐powered approach enhances the objectivity, efficiency, affordability and scalability of technology valuation, enabling more transparent, data‐driven IP trade globally.

ABSTRACT How to enhance the resilience of global value chains (GVC) to withstand potential risks and adapt to complex changes is a global issue that needs to be addressed. This paper identifies and examines the effects and mechanisms of digital services trade barriers on the resilience of GVC in 55 countries and 44 industries based on panel data from 2000 to 2018. We find that digital trade barriers to services have a significant inhibitory effect on the enhancement of GVC resilience, which is mainly achieved through three mechanisms: increasing trade costs, weakening industrial linkages, and hindering technological innovation. The negative effects of digital trade barriers vary significantly across different digital trade barrier policy areas, different sources of digital factor inputs, different embedded positions in GVC, and different digital factor‐intensive industries. Improving digital infrastructure and enhancing international coordination of digital trade policies are effective measures for global economies to mitigate the negative effects of barriers to trade in digital services.

ABSTRACT In this paper, we explore the digital transformation of Chinese firms and their impact on service integration within manufacturing activities in China. Using highly disaggregated firm‐product level data, we examine various dimensions of the servicification in manufacturing and assess how digital adoption affects these processes. Our findings indicate that the adoption of digital technologies significantly drives Chinese manufacturing firms to generate more service outputs, either by complementing traditional manufacturing activities or by increasingly substituting manufacturing products with services. Moreover, we observe that digital adoption substantially improves the productivity and profitability of these firms, further incentivising them to expand their service offerings. Using text mining and sentiment analysis, we find that only manufacturing firms with positive attitudes toward digitalisation strategy tend to increase their service outputs. These results highlight the transformative effects of digital technology on manufacturing production, shedding new light on the evolving trends of service‐led global value chain upgrading in China.

ABSTRACT This article utilises customs data from 2010 to 2016 to measure export values at the ‘city‐industry’ level, focusing on the impact of industrial robot adoption in developed market‐oriented countries on China's export performance. A theoretical model is constructed to explore how the use of industrial robots abroad affects China's exports. Additionally, a penetration index of foreign industrial robot usage and an instrumental variable are developed. The main findings are as follows: First, the use of robots in developed market‐oriented countries has a negative impact on China's exports, while the impact of robot adoption in competitive countries with similar endowments to China is not significant. Second, the negative effects from robot usage in developed countries are intensified in industries with a high cross‐industry input ratio, low international trade costs, and a high degree of robotisation. Third, robot adoption in developed countries also poses certain obstacles to China's efforts in exploring new export markets. This article has significant implications for formulating policies aimed at ‘stabilizing foreign trade’ and provides insights into the new dynamics of global industrial chain restructuring.

ABSTRACT This study analyzes the impact of economic freedom and economic growth in 51 developing countries for the period 2000–2021. Using panel cointegration and dynamic panel GMM estimators, we test whether institutional quality—as reflected by economic freedom—drives long‐run income growth. The results indicate a persistent positive effect of economic freedom on GDP per capita, consistent across different estimation techniques. Investment also contributes positively to growth, while labor effects are more heterogeneous. These findings underscore the importance of institutional reforms that strengthen market efficiency and reduce regulatory barriers in sustaining economic growth across developing economies.

ABSTRACT Export expansion inevitably triggers a restructuring of the labour market's supply–demand dynamics while catalysing economic growth. Previous studies predominantly scrutinised the trade–labour market nexus from the point of labour supply or market equilibrium, with relatively scant examinations from the demand perspective. This study adopts skill demand as the focal point and integrates a diverse array of datasets, including enterprises' online recruitment data, O*NET data and assorted macro‐ and micro‐level data. By leveraging the Bartik method, we construct a variable for export demand at the city level to measure the demand level in the export market and empirically probe its impact on enterprises' female skill demand. The results suggest that export market expansion significantly increases the demand for female skills. Consistent with our theoretical analysis, the estimates indicate that this relationship holds because export market expansion promotes technology upgrading of enterprises, promotes market competition and contributes to the formation of egalitarian gender perspectives. Further research indicates that digital economy development plays a positive moderating role in the impact of export market expansion on female skill demand in enterprises.