No abstract

No abstract

This paper extends the existing studies of cyclical fiscal policy by providing the first systematic theoretical and empirical study of cyclical quasi‐fiscal investment of state‐owned enterprises (SOEs) in China. Using data from Chinese listed companies and the System GMM method, the results show that: (1) both central and local SOEs exhibit expansion‐biased investment behaviours; (2) the expansion‐biased investment of central SOEs mainly goes to the tertiary industry and the western regions of China, while the expansion‐biased investment of local SOEs mainly occurs in the tertiary industry and the middle and western regions of China; (3) during the economic recession, the higher the local growth targets, the more bank credit central and local SOEs can obtain, and the more pronounced the expansion‐biased investment. The study shows that apart from the countercyclical fiscal policy implemented by central and local governments, the quasi‐fiscal function of central and local SOE investments is also key for the Chinese economy to quickly recover from recessions.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

To stimulate economic growth, the Chinese government implemented three consecutive policies between 2016 and 2019 to reduce the corporate endowment insurance contribution ratio (CEICR), the highest payment item for Chinese companies. Using China's CEICR reduction policies as a quasi-natural experiment, this paper evaluates the impact of corporate payment burden reduction on employee wages. Generally, reducing CEICR appears to prompt companies to increase employee wages. Corporate cash flow is a possible channel of influence. Moreover, the positive effect is found to be more pronounced in companies that are more labor intensive, performing better in labor payment compliance, and located in regions with higher pressure for elderly care.This paper off ers evidence in favor of implementing CEICR reduction policies from the perspective of improving the well-being of employees.

Based on the variance decomposition method of Eggers and Ioannides, the sources of long-term stability of the Chinese economy since the mid-1990s are estimated and the potential influence of structural optimization is predicted. Results show that: (i) the contribution of industrial structural adjustment was a negative 46.38%; and (ii) if the share of the expenditure structure was adjusted to the average level in the early period, the contribution of structural optimization would be approximately 38.25%. Moreover, it is believed that a reasonable economic structure can be achieved only through the implementation of a development strategy that takes comparative advantage into consideration.p aer_520 637..652