Towards green economic recovery: how to improve green total factor productivity

Abstract

Achieving green economic recovery is crucial to improving environmental quality and sustainable development. This study examines the influence of new digital infrastructure on green total factor productivity (GTFP) using panel data from 30 regions in China from 2008 to 2019. The results are as follows: (1) New digital infrastructure has a significant improvement effect on GTFP. After a series of robustness tests, the conclusion is still valid. (2) The improvement effect of new digital infrastructure on GTFP shows significant heterogeneity. In regions with high industrial agglomeration, high environmental regulation and strong government environmental preference, the improvement effect of new digital infrastructure on GTFP is more obvious. (3) New digital infrastructure improves GTFP through green technology innovation and factor allocation optimization. The government should strengthen the fiscal incentives for green technology development while increasing R&D investment in fiscal expenditure, thus promoting green economic recovery.