Innovation Of Chinese Enterprises Research Articles

The Value Effect of ESG Performance and Corporate Governance Innovation in Chinese Enterprises under High-Quality Development

Abstract: This paper arises from the ongoing development of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) information disclosure and governance in recent years, and the academic interest in these areas. While numerous discussions on ESG information disclosure and governance exist, a comprehensive review and summary are still lacking. This paper focuses on academic research on the application and innovation of ESG information disclosure and governance in Chinese enterprises, aiming to provide research directions and perspectives for future researchers. The main data sources for this study are CNKI and CSSCI, selecting papers and journals from the past ten years and using Citespace to analyze the collected data. The results show that corporate value is closely linked to consumer interests. Through innovations in ESG governance models, operational risks are reduced, resource utilization is improved, and the social functions of enterprises are highlighted, achieving sustainable development.

ESG performance and green innovation of Chinese enterprises: Based on the perspective of financing constraints

Sustainable development needs to rely on green innovation. Enterprise ESG performance rating to alleviate the information asymmetry between enterprises and investors, for the green innovation provides development opportunities. However, there is a lack of research on the mechanism of the two based on the perspective of financing constraints. Therefore, considering the theories of sustainable development, green innovation, financing constraints and stakeholders, the basic mechanism and non-linear mechanism of ESG and green innovation are explored, aiming to provide reference for playing the role of ESG performance in promoting green innovation. The results show that better ESG performance can significantly promote the output of green innovation, and this promoting effect exists for both high-end green innovation and low-end green innovation, and its main channel is to alleviate financing constraints. In addition, this incentive exists a double threshold of digital finance and a single threshold of enterprise scale. Perfect digital finance and larger enterprise scale will strengthen the incentive effect of enterprise ESG performance on green innovation output. Considering financing constraints, this study further clarifies the relationship between enterprises ESG performance and green innovation, enriching the theoretical framework of green innovation and offering a new pathway for advancing green innovation among Chinese enterprises.

Corporate green innovation under environmental regulation: The role of ESG ratings and greenwashing

China's economic trajectory has transitioned from prioritizing rapid growth to emphasizing quality, efficiency, and sustainability. In this context, balancing environmental protection with the promotion of a green economy has become increasingly significant. This study investigates the relationship between environmental regulation and green innovation in Chinese enterprises using data from listed companies spanning 2007 to 2019. The results indicate that environmental regulations positively influence green innovation among firms, a finding validated by robustness checks, including instrumental variable methods. Furthermore, the study identifies corporate greenwashing behaviors and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance as mediating factors. Firms resort to greenwashing strategies to mitigate regulatory pressures while simultaneously fulfilling their ESG responsibilities, thus contributing to green innovation. Additionally, the study reveals that the impact of environmental regulations on green innovation is heterogeneous, varying according to the external economic environment, firm ownership, and industry characteristics. The positive effect is more pronounced under lower levels of government intervention, in private enterprises, and among energy and new energy sectors. These findings underscore the nuanced dynamics between regulatory frameworks and corporate innovation in China.

Empowering Sustainable Development Goals through Green HRM: Driving Green Dynamic Capabilities and Green Innovation in Chinese Enterprises

Empowering Sustainable Development Goals through Green HRM: Driving Green Dynamic Capabilities and Green Innovation in Chinese Enterprises

Does financialization inhibit enterprise innovation? Analysis of innovation behavior of Chinese enterprises based on evolutionary game

Enterprise innovation remains a cornerstone of economic development, with the direct influence of financialization on enterprise innovation standing as a critical factor. In contrast with the existing research, this study constructs an evolutionary game model by utilizing the Cournot model to analyze the innovation behavior of enterprises, and analyzes the influence of financialization on enterprise innovation by incorporating investment returns, market competition, and demand scale into the research framework. In addition, this study selects the sample of the Chinese non-financial listed enterprises and using panel data for the period 2009 to 2021. Based on the findings from the empirical analysis, this study reveals that excessive financialization hinders innovation in Chinese enterprises. Additionally, an intermediary pathway involving 'financialization - investment returns - enterprise innovation' is identified as a transmission mechanism. The demand scale generated by innovation inversely correlates with the inhibitory effects of financialization on enterprise innovation behavior. Meanwhile, heightened market competition amplifies the inhibitory influence of financialization on innovation. This study provided valuable empirical evidence, facilitating the enhancement of enterprise innovation efficiency.

US–China trade war and key digital technology innovation of Chinese enterprises

ABSTRACT We empirically examine the impact of the US–China trade war (trade war) on Chinese firms’ key digital technological innovation (KDI) using the difference-in-difference (DID) method, considering trade war as a quasi-natural experiment. Our findings suggest that the trade war promotes Chinese firms to apply for more key digital technology patents (KDPs). Heterogeneity analysis reveals that the promotion is stronger in firms of lower leverage and high-tech industries. Additional analysis indicates that KDI helps mitigate the adverse impact of trade war on Chinese firms’ market performance.

Research on the Impact of ESG Rating on Innovation in Chinese Enterprises

Research on the Impact of ESG Rating on Innovation in Chinese Enterprises

Diversification of Source and Import of Intermediate Products and Innovation of Chinese Enterprises

Diversification of Source and Import of Intermediate Products and Innovation of Chinese Enterprises

Administrative incentives and enterprise green innovation: Based on empirical evidence from China

This study examines the impact of administrative incentive policies on green innovation of Chinese enterprises from 2015 to 2022. The results show that administrative incentive policies can increase the number of green patent applications and the number of green patent citations, thus improving the level of enterprise green innovation. However, differences in policy types lead to differences in the degree of impact, with command and control incentive policies having a stronger facilitating effect than economic incentive policies.

Public procurement and green innovation in Chinese enterprises: insights from econometric models and cross-case studies

ABSTRACT This study employs econometric models and cross-case analysis to investigate the impact and mechanism of public procurement (PP) on enterprises’ green innovation (EGI). Based on the manual identification of government customers, we conduct panel model estimations on Chinese listed company data from 2010 to 2021. Findings reveal that PP has a green innovation effect at the micro level. Moreover, expected market returns, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and financing constraints play a mediating role between PP and EGI. Additionally, we delved into the relationship between PP and EGI through a cross-case study. It not only validates the conclusions drawn from the econometric model but also summarises the heterogeneous characteristics of PP affecting EGI in practice. This study not only contributes to the existing literature on the outcomes of PP and factors impacting EGI but also furnishes additional empirical insights into the mechanisms through which PP enhances EGI.

Green Credit Policy and Corporate Green Innovation in China

Purpose - The study aims to explore the impact of green-credit policies on the green innovation of Chinese enterprises and analyzes the moderating effects of green credit constraints on industry enterprises, as well as commercial credit and financing constraints.
 Design/Methodology/Approach - In this paper, the theory of sustainable development, the Porter Hypothesis, and the theory of financing constraints are combined to analyze the impact of green credit policies on corporate green innovation using A-share listed companies from 2007 to 2021 as research samples. The Differences-in-Differences (DID) model is used. The DID model can eliminate the effects of time and individual fixed effects by comparing the differences between the treatment group and the control group, thereby providing a more accurate estimation of the policy’s impact.
 Findings - The research results show that green credit policies have played an important role in promoting corporate green innovation. Enterprises actively engaged in green innovation have achieved good development after implementing green-credit policies through structural adjustments and improving market competitiveness.
 Research Implications - The impact mechanism of green credit on the green innovation of industry enterprises can provide reference for the formulation and optimization of green financial policies, promote sustainable development of enterprises, realize the transformation and upgrading of the green economy, and have positive significance in promoting green governance and sustainable development.

Research on the Micro-Driving Mechanism of Digital Finance on the Green Technology Innovation of Chinese Enterprises

Green technology innovation is an important driving force for the sustainable development of Chinese enterprises, and digital finance can play a huge driving role in the green technology innovation of enterprises. Digital finance is the current trend of financial innovation, which can promote the comprehensive development of economy and society. Digital finance has played a certain driving role in the green technology innovation of Chinese enterprises, but there are still many deficiencies. The empirical research discusses the micro driving mechanism of digital finance for green technology innovation of Chinese enterprises, finds the shortcomings and puts forward the direction of improvement, so as to more effectively realize the driving value of digital finance to green technology innovation of enterprises. It is found that the driving function of digital finance is significantly higher than that of digital finance application; digital finance has significant driving function of green design innovation and green product innovation, but green production innovation is weak. The regulating function of digital level and corporate social responsibility exist, but has not been fully played. The digital finance driving function of enterprises in eastern region is significantly higher than that of central and western enterprises, and the digital finance driving function of medium-sized enterprises is significantly higher than that of large and small enterprises.

Effects of climate policy uncertainty on green innovation in Chinese enterprises

Climate policy uncertainty is an important factor for green innovation in Chinese enterprises. Drawing on data of officially listed enterprises in China from 2011 to 2020 this paper empirically tests the impact and mechanism of climate policy uncertainty on enterprises green innovation. Climate policy uncertainty has a significant negative impact on enterprises green innovation. Increasing climate policy uncertainty will inhibit enterprises green innovation. The intrinsic mechanism shows that the mediation effects of government green subsidies, environmental social responsibility, and financing constraints are significant. Increasing climate policy uncertainty inhibits green innovation by reducing government green subsidies, constraining enterprises to fulfilling their environmental social responsibility and raising financing constraints. All levels of the government in China should pay close attention to the impact of changes in the United States climate policies on enterprises.

Can network infrastructure construction improve the low-carbon innovation of Chinese enterprises?

This study considers the implementation of the "Broadband China" strategy as an exogenous policy shock and examines the impact of network infrastructure construction (NIC) on the low-carbon innovation (LCI) of enterprises and its underlying mechanisms by using a progressive difference-in-difference model based on the data of Chinese listed enterprises from 2009 to 2020. This study finds that NIC can improve the LCI of enterprises. After the elimination of the sample selection bias and selection of the urban slope as the exogenous instrumental variable, the conclusions remained robust. The results of the mechanism test show that upgrading the human capital level, reducing transaction costs, and alleviating financing constraints are the three important paths through which NIC can help enterprises improve their LCI level. The heterogeneity analysis determines that NIC has considerable comparative advantages for enterprises with executives who have a financial background and enterprises with high knowledge stock. In addition, LCI improvement can further enhance enterprise value. The research conclusions can broaden the microscopic research perspective of enterprise transformation and upgrading theory and provide reliable empirical evidence for China's low-carbon economic transformation.

Unpacking the Mechanisms of Network Embeddedness for Low-Carbon Innovation in Chinese Enterprises: A Dynamic and Cognitive Theory Perspective

In the context of low-carbon economies, there is a clarion call for enterprises to change traditional economic management styles in order to achieve optimal gains. Against this background, the mechanism to improve low-carbon innovation capabilities of enterprises has become the holy grail for top management teams. Based on the social network, dynamic ability and upper echelon theories, this study explores the impact of network embeddedness on low-carbon innovation of enterprises and further analyzes the intermediary role of low-carbon dynamic abilities and the moderating role of executives’ low-carbon cognition. To achieve the objectives of this study, a sample of 386 enterprises in China were selected for the study. The results show that (1) Both structural embeddedness and relational embeddedness have significant positive effects on enterprises low-carbon innovation; (2) A low-carbon dynamic ability functions as a partially mediated factor between structural embeddedness and enterprise low-carbon innovation; (3) Low-carbon dynamic capacity plays a complete intermediary role between relational embeddedness and enterprise low-carbon innovation; (4) Executives’ low-carbon cognition moderates the relationship between low-carbon dynamic ability and low carbon innovation of enterprises. That is, the stronger the executives’ low-carbon cognition, the stronger the positive impact of dynamic ability on enterprise low-carbon innovation and vice versa. This study expands research in social network theory and the low-carbon innovation of enterprises. Furthermore, this study provides a solid theoretical basis for enterprises to effectively carry out low-carbon innovation while providing a solid reference for enterprises to improve their low-carbon innovation aspirations.

Can Digital Services Trade Liberalization Improve the Quality of Green Innovation of Enterprises? Evidence from China

Green innovation is a critical driver in achieving the goals of “carbon peaking” and “carbon neutrality”, as well as an important aid in accelerating green transformation. Does the opening-up of digital services trade, as a major component of the high-level opening-up strategy, serve to improve the quality of green innovation of Chinese enterprises at this critical juncture in China’s promotion of ecological civilization? To answer this question, this paper measures the degree of openness of digital services trade in each industry in China, and it empirically examines the impact of digital services trade liberalization on enterprises’ green innovation quality using data from A-share listed companies from 2014 to 2021. This research finds that, first, digital services trade liberalization can significantly improve the quality of green innovation of Chinese enterprises, which still holds after a series of robustness tests. Second, mechanism analysis indicates that digital services trade liberalization promotes enterprises’ green innovation quality by improving human capital level, increasing green R&D expenditure, and strengthening information resource sharing. Third, a heterogeneity test shows that the effect of digital services trade liberalization on the quality of green innovation is more prominent for state-owned enterprises, enterprises with stronger technology absorption capacity, highly competitive industries, and regions with a high intensity of environmental regulations. The study’s findings not only provide new perspectives and ideas for enterprises’ green innovation practices in the midst of the digital services trade wave but also theoretical and empirical support for the inherent self-consistency between high-level opening-up and green development.

The impact of the digital economy on Chinese enterprise innovation based on intermediation models with financing constraints

The digital economy has become an important driving force for the steady development of China's economy, and enterprise innovation is a key element for an enterprise's survival and development. This paper constructs a mathematical model to measure the scale of digital economic development and the efficiency of enterprise innovation. It builds a fixed effects model and mediated effects model to study the effect of the development of the digital economy on enterprise innovation based on data from 30 provinces from 2012 to 2020. The results show that (1) there is a significant positive effect of the digital economy on enterprise innovation with an impact coefficient of 0.028, and the economic meaning of the coefficient is that for every 1-point increase in the digital economy index, the ratio of R&D capital expenditures to the enterprise's operating income increases by 0.028% points. This finding remains significant in the robustness test. (2) A further test of the mediating effect finds that the digital economy can drive enterprise innovation by reducing financing constraints. (3) In the regional heterogeneity analysis, it is found that the effect of the digital economy in promoting enterprise innovation is more prominent in the central region, and the impact coefficients are 0.04, 0.06, 0.025, and 0.024 for the eastern, central, western, and northeastern regions, respectively. Taking the central region as an example, the economic meaning of the coefficient is that for every 1-point increase in the digital economy index, the ratio of R&D capital expenditures to the enterprise's operating income increases by 0.06% points. The findings of this paper are of practical significance to enterprises in enhancing their innovation capabilities and promoting the high-quality development of China's economy.

Increasing Quantity or Improving Quality: Can Soil Pollution Control Promote Green Innovation in China’s Industrial and Mining Enterprises?

This paper uses the provisions of the Soil Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan for industrial and mining enterprises as a quasi-natural experiment and constructs a difference-in-differences (DID) model to study its effect on increasing the quantity and improving the quality of green innovation based on a panel of 453 industrial and mining enterprises in Shanghai and Shenzhen A-shares in China from 2011 to 2020. The results show that the Soil Plan can significantly promote the increase of green innovation and the quality of industrial and mining enterprises, and the results are still valid after a series of robustness tests. The mechanism test shows that the Soil Plan promotes the quality of green innovation by alleviating the financing constraints of industrial and mining enterprises, but the impact on their incremental quantity is not significant. The heterogeneity analysis shows that the effect of the Soil Plan on the quality of green innovation is stronger in the sample with a more independent board of directors and a digital mine transformation. This paper enriches the results in the field of soil pollution prevention and industrial and mining enterprises, and has important implications for the practice of promoting green innovation in Chinese enterprises.

The impact of FDI technology spillover on the innovation quality of Chinese enterprises: a microperspective based on geographic proximity

PurposePrevious studies have reached inconsistent conclusions on foreign direct investment (FDI) technology spillovers and corporate innovation. The main purpose of this paper is to explore the technological spillover effects of FDI from the microperspective of firm linkages induced by geographic distance. Further analysis is conducted on the impact and mechanism of this spillover on the innovation quality of Chinese enterprises. The conclusions drawn from this paper can guide Chinese enterprises' foreign capital utilization and innovation strategy choices.Design/methodology/approachUsing the data of China's A-share listed companies from 2009 to 2019, this paper explores the role of FDI technology spillover in enterprise innovation quality through a two-way fixed-effect model. The robustness of the results is proven by substituting variables, adding industry fixed effects and excluding high-profit groups, and further using the two-stage least squares (2SLS) method to alleviate the empirical endogeneity problem.FindingsThese findings indicate that FDI technology spillover based on geographic proximity has a positive impact on the innovation quality of Chinese enterprises. However, there are different impacts for different types of enterprises. FDI technology spillover has a positive impact on the innovation quality of non-state-owned enterprises (non-SOEs) and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), while it has no effect on state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and large enterprises. The authors also find that the degree of financing constraints and R&D investment are important transmission mechanisms between FDI technology spillover and enterprise innovation quality.Research limitations/implicationsThis study ignores industry characteristics when considering foreign enterprises around Chinese enterprises. In fact, technology spillover effects differ across industries. When the authors matched microdata to regions, only the provincial level was considered. Therefore, there is still room for further research. In future research, the authors should consider industry characteristics and group foreign enterprises and Chinese enterprises in the same industry and in different industries to explore industry differences in technology spillover. In addition, when matching corporate data to regions, the authors can match to the city level and draw city-level conclusions.Practical implicationsThis study is different from previous studies that focus on the quantity of enterprise innovation or innovation output. The authors focus on the role of technological spillovers in the quality of Chinese enterprise innovation, enriching research in the field of enterprise innovation quality. In addition, the current FDI technology spillover indicators are technically difficult to measure at the micro level. The authors draw inspiration from the theory of the geographical structure of financial supply and combine the creation methods of macro and micro indicators in existing articles in other fields. The authors ingeniously construct a new FDI technical spillover indicator. This indicator combines the commonly used regional FDI technology spillover with the geographic proximity of enterprises at the microlevel by constructing an interaction term between the two. This indicator not only alleviates the endogeneity problem to a certain extent but also has implications for future research in the field of FDI technology spillovers at the micro level.Social implications(1) FDI technology spillovers are an effective way to improve the innovation quality of local enterprises, especially for non-SOEs and SMEs. Therefore, The authors suggest that in the context of dual circulation, the Chinese government should continue to open wider to the outside world and encourage foreign enterprises to invest in China. (2) In future development, managers of SOEs and large enterprises should create an innovation incentive mechanism. Moreover, they should change their vertical management structure and make full use of their policy advantages and budget advantages to increase innovation activities. In the process of acquiring technology spillovers, enterprises need to solve their own financing constraints.Originality/valueFirst, this study solves a technical problem. It is technically difficult to measure the current FDI technical spillover indicators at the micro level. This study innovatively constructs a new FDI technology spillover indicator that combines regional FDI technology spillovers with the microperspective of the geographical proximity of enterprises. This approach not only alleviates certain endogeneity problems in the empirical evidence but also enriches relevant research in the field of technology spillover. In addition, this study focuses on the impact and mechanism of this spillover, which addresses the current research gap among previous studies that mainly focus on innovation quantity and ignore innovation quality.

Why do Chinese enterprises make imitative innovation?-An empirical explanation based on government subsidies.

The previous literature analyzed the widespread imitative innovation of Chinese enterprises from various perspectives, including enterprises' rational choice of cost-gain, property rights system, human capital and policy environment. However, this paper provides a brand-new perspective on government subsidies for the reasons behind the imitative innovation of enterprises. According to the statistics from Chinese enterprise-labor matching, we found that government subsidies stimulated enterprises to make “imitative innovation” through patent purchase rather than independent R&D. Government subsidies were used for low-risk “imitative innovation” because of enterprises' rent-seeking behavior, low R&D ability and the review of government subsidy projects. Based on the above conclusions, this paper suggests that the government should reduce or withdraw its intervention in enterprise innovation and implement the post-subsidy and post-evaluation mechanism for government-subsidized programs.