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Connect to Trade

Haoyuan Ding, Haichao Fan, Shu Lin, Feb 21, 2018

A key foundation of Chinese-style institutions is that different levels of government control resources and utilize their power to support businesses connected to them. Professors Haoyuan Ding of Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, Haichao Fan of Fudan University, and Shu Lin of the Chinese University of Hong Kong develop a theoretical model and present supporting empirical evidence to show how this institutional feature affects firm exports in China. In particular, they find that political connection has a positive effect on export in industries that heavily rely on external finance and contracting environment, but a negative effect on export in other industries.

Going Green in China: Firms’ Responses to Stricter Environmental Regulations

Haichao Fan, Joshua Graff Zivin, Zonglai Kou, Xueyue Liu, Huanhuan Wang, Apr 29, 2020

Evidence from China shows that firms respond to stricter enforcement of the emission reduction target by reducing their pollution. This effect is stronger for firms in industries with higher pollution intensity. Stricter environmental regulations also lead to sharp declines in firms’ profits, capital, and labor. A sequence of tests of the underlying mechanisms reveals...

China’s New Nationwide CO2 Emissions Trading System: General Equilibrium Impacts

Lawrence H. Goulder, Xianling Long, Chenfei Qu, Da Zhang, Apr 17, 2024

This article discussing the comprehensive impacts of China's newly introduced nationwide CO2 emissions trading system, with a focus on its interactions with environmental costs, the fiscal system, and the challenges faced in policy cost distribution.

How Rural Pensions Boosted China's Economy

Qingen Gai, Naijia Guo, Bingjing Li, Qinghua Shi, Xiaodong Zhu, Dec 31, 2025

China’s New Rural Pension Scheme unexpectedly lowered the high cost of migration by freeing younger workers from household duties – boosting migration, wages, household welfare, and even national GDP.

In Rural China, Gift-Giving Is an Increasingly Costly Competition

Erwin Bulte, Ruixin Wang, Xiaobo Zhang, May 01, 2019

Gift expenditures grow swiftly in rural China and may adversely affect people's welfare. While gift-giving helps to maintain social status and connections, gift competition may create a predicament: people must spend more and more to "keep up with the Joneses." As a result, the escalating gift expenses crowd out spending on other important consumption and become increasingly burdensome to people in rural areas, particularly to the poor.