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The Impact of FDI on Domestic Firm Innovation: Evidence from Foreign Investment Deregulation in China

Yan Liu, Xuan Wang, Aug 04, 2021

This paper studies the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) on domestic firms’ innovation in China. Using firm level patent application records that cover all manufacturing firms with annual sales above 5M Yuan from 1998 to 2007, our results show that both the quantity and quality of domestic firms’ innovation benefit from FDI. In addition to the traditional spillover effect from FDI in the same industry, the paper emphasizes the importance of knowledge spillover...

Lucky Dragons

Chih Ming Tan, Xiao Wang, Xiaobo Zhang, Feb 21, 2024

This article explores the intriguing connection between Chinese zodiac signs and parental investment in children’s development. Particularly, parents invest more in children born under the “lucky” sign of the dragon, potentially impacting their cognitive and noncognitive skills alike.

Clean Air as an Experience Good in Urban China

Matthew E. Kahn, Weizeng Sun, Siqi Zheng, Oct 14, 2020

If clean air is a valued experience good, then the short-term reduction in pollution in the spring of 2020 due to the COVID-19 shutdown could have persistent medium-term effects on reducing urban pollution levels as cities adopt new “blue sky” regulations to maintain recent pollution progress. Using data from 144 cities in China, we find that the largest experience good effect should take place for cities featuring a high pollution-sensitive population and where air quality has sharply improved during the pandemic. The residents...

Exporting like China: The Determinants of Trade Status

Russell Cooper, Guan Gong, Guanliang Hu, Ping Yan, Feb 03, 2021

We study the export decision of Chinese manufacturing firms, both public and privately owned enterprises. In 2019, China’s exports of goods accounted for 13% of goods exported in the world and around 20% of China’s GDP. The importance of understanding the determinants of trade patterns in China goes beyond its national borders. Observed export decisions contradict the prediction of the standard trade model...

Implicit Guarantees and the Rise of Shadow Banking: the Case of Trust Products

Franklin Allen, Xian Gu, C. Wei Li, Jun Qian, Yiming Qian, Sep 06, 2023

The prevalent implicit guarantees provided by financial intermediaries have been a central feature of shadow banking products in China. Our theoretical investigation shows that providing implicit guarantees can be the second-best arrangement and mitigate capital misallocation.