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This paper takes the China high- and new-technology enterprise (HNTE) program implemented in 2008 as a quasi-natural experiment. Difference-in-differences (DID) estimate with matching data from the China Industrial Enterprise Database, the China Customs Database and the HNTE Certification Database for 2006–2010 is used to study the impact of HNTE certification on enterprises' export product quality. The results show that, overall, HNTE certification promotes the upgrading of export product quality. Moreover, the improvement of innovation ability brought by HNTE certification is an important channel to promote such upgrades. A series of robustness tests also confirm the above conclusions. In addition, heterogeneity analyses are conducted based on the enterprise size, ownership and trade mode, respectively. The results show that the mechanism by which HNTE certification policy promotes export product quality through the improvement of enterprise innovation ability is more significant in non-SOEs and general trading enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of green finance and the promotion of green transformation and upgrading of high energy-consuming enterprises are of great significance for China to achieve the "double carbon" goal. This paper employs a dual fixed-effects model to examine the profound ramifications and intrinsic mechanisms of green finance development on the transformative innovation of high-energy-consumption enterprises, using a sample of 462 publicly traded high-energy-consuming corporations from the period spanning 2016 to 2020. The results show that the development of green finance promotes the transformation and innovation of energy-intensive enterprises and that market-incentivized environmental regulation plays a partially mediating role; the results of heterogeneity analysis show that green finance promotes the transformation and innovation of high energy-consuming enterprises with significant differences in different low-carbon pilot regions, company ownership, and enterprise size; the mechanism analysis shows that the development of green finance can increase government subsidies and alleviate financing constraints to promote the transformation and innovation of high energy-consuming enterprises; it is also found that the development of green finance can significantly improve the financial performance of enterprises. The research findings of this paper hold significant implications for promoting the sustainable development of green finance and high-energy consumption enterprises in China. They provide valuable insights and references for facilitating the green transformation and innovation of high-energy-consuming enterprises in China as well as other developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under limited technological resources, optimising financing channel to R&D investment has important theoretical and practical implications. This paper analyzed the threshold effects of internal financing channels and external financing channels on the R&D investment using 692 manufacturing listed companies' data from 2008 to 2015. And five threshold factors including the debt level, profit level, operational capacity, company's size, and bank loan ratio were used to estimate the threshold effects of different financing channels. The results show that internal financing has a positive threshold effect on R&D investment when the debt level is lower than the threshold value; equity financing is negatively related to R&D investment; debt financing has a significant negative effect on the R&D investment under certain threshold levels; government subsidies promote the R&D investment extremely for the companies with certain size and scale effect. Besides, this paper proposed corresponding suggestions for different threshold values and financing channels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the impact of highway construction on the size distribution of manufacturing firms using Chinese firm and highway network data. I construct instrumental variables using historical and counterfactual road approaches to identify the causal effects of highway construction. I find that highway construction can increase firm size dispersion and market concentration. Areas near highways have a higher number of firms, more outsourcing activities, and more large firms; while areas further from highways have a higher share of new entry firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the extent to which electricity shortage influences technical efficiency using data of 805 listed manufacturing companies in China from 2009 to 2020 collected from the CSMAR database. To achieve the objectives of this paper, first, a stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) is used to estimate the technical efficiency (TE) score of manufacturing companies. Subsequently, the TE score is used to evaluate the electricity shortage index and other factors that are postulated to affect enterprise productivity. Two estimation methods have been adopted including ordinary least squares (OLS), which is less robust to endogeneity and instrumental variable (IV) estimation, which turns out to be more robust to endogeneity in the data. The empirical results show that, under OLS estimation, electricity shortage has a significantly negative impact on the technical efficiency of the listed manufacturing companies. However, when IV regression is implemented to address endogeneity issues in the data, electricity shortages tend to have a significantly positive impact on the technical efficiency, underscoring the importance of capturing endogeneity in the data. Extending the baseline results, this study also finds that, while the size of an enterprise may have no bearing, state-owned companies are more likely to be negatively affected by electricity shortages compared to privately owned companies. These results have significant implications for industrial policy design in China in particular, and developing countries in general. Most importantly, the results of this study underscore the importance of policies and measures to promote a shift in the ownership structure towards the private sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of this paper is to study the impact of the Ambient Air Quality Standard (2012) on the green innovation of Chinese firms in polluting industries. The analysis features "leverage effect" of Porter Hypothesis imposed by environmental regulations and exploits exogenous variations caused by the promulgation of the new policy. Based on the exogenous variations, this paper uses the time varying PSM-DID method. The findings of this study suggest that the implementation of the new policy improves firms' green innovation. Increments in R&D investment and environmental protection investment are channels through which the new standard positively affects firms' green innovation. The cross-sectional heterogeneity analysis exhibits that the effect of this environmental regulation is stronger for firms with bigger size and lower financial constraints. The contribution and significance of this study are as follows: our study enriches understanding of the impact of environmental regulation on firms' green innovation by empirically confirming the influencing channels of the impact of environmental regulations on green innovation. In addition, this paper contributes to the firms' green innovation literature by empirically validating the role of corporate characteristics in moderating the effect of environmental regulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foreign direct investment (FDI) technology spillovers play an increasingly important role in a host country's development. Evaluating the positive effect of FDI inflows on green innovation is essential for correct city design. Based on the panel data of 262 cities in China from 2004 to 2018, we first analyzed the impact of FDI technology spillovers on green innovation in Chinese cities and then tested the threshold effect in four absorptive capacity factors: environmental regulation, economic growth, human capital, and industry size. Finally, we compared the time and space of two types of cities crossing the threshold from the perspective of innovative and non-innovative cities. The results show that FDI can significantly promote green innovation in Chinese cities and the promoting effect of FDI on green innovation has nonlinear characteristics, namely, such effects only make sense when absorptive capacity is above the threshold points. Additionally, among the four absorptive capacity factors, the development degrees of innovative cities are ahead of non-innovative cities; in particular, there is a significant difference between them in terms of economic growth. Local governments should develop reasonable policy combination tools according to the absorptive capacity characteristics of different cities to effectively promote the technology spillover effect of FDI and achieve coordinated ecological and economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital transformation (DT) has been a key way for pharmaceutical companies to enhance innovation and R&D capabilities, improve product quality, reduce costs, and create competitive advantages. The external environment factors and the internal conditions' factors are the main factors affecting the DT of pharmaceutical companies. This research aimed to probe the effects of the external environment factors, the internal conditions' factors, firm size, and control variables on the DT of pharmaceutical companies based on synergetics. Purposive sampling and snowball sampling were used in this research. In addition, this research collected 395 valid data from Chinese pharmaceutical companies through online questionnaires. This research used quantitative analysis, and SPSS and Amos software were applied to data processing analysis. The results of structural equation modelling (SEM) and regression analysis showed that the external environment factors and the internal conditions' factors had a significantly positive correlation with the DT of pharmaceutical companies, and the effects of the internal conditions on the DT of pharmaceutical companies were greater than that of the external environment. In addition, firm size positively moderated the relationship between the external environment, internal conditions, and the DT of pharmaceutical companies. The results of this research not only can provide theoretical reference for scholars but also put forward implementation suggestions of DT for Chinese pharmaceutical company managers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an innovative regulation of environmental governance, the role of environmental protection inspection in green innovation has received limited attention. This paper adopted DID (difference-in-difference) model to address the effect of central environmental protection inspection (CEPI) and explored why and how the CEPI affects corporate green innovation. We further investigated the moderating roles of firm size and firm age as organisation-level factors. With a sample of China's listed companies from 2014 to 2019, the empirical results show that the CEPI is significantly and positively associated with green innovation and that both firm size and firm age strengthen the positive effect of the CEPI on green innovation. We conducted PSM (propensity score matching) model to mitigate the endogenous problem and found our results are robust. This paper contributes to the literature about the CEPI and green innovation, and sheds light on environment policy enactment for the government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hazardous waste as a global issue closely links environmental pollution, public health, resource sustainability, and social governance. Its rapid increase and distinct drawbacks have threatened our eco-civilized planet. The Drivers-Pressures-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) framework can demonstrate how cultural, political, and economic behavior varies in an anthropogenic system. In this review, we use this systematic framework to examine China's hazardous waste management venture and uncover the fundamental theory of man-land relationship. The key drivers (e.g., policy, technology, industry, and socioeconomic incentives) are equipped in a shareable manner, and these drivers can affect waste trends in each region depending on population size and industry level. However, pressure for the achievement of sustainable development goals is yielded by the drivers of industrialization and improper hazardous waste management. In China, the state of hazardous waste generation increased from 9.74 Mt (1Mt = 109kg) in 1998 to 75 Mt in 2018. During 2001-2017, the comprehensive utilization, disposal, and storage ranged from 5-20 Mt, 2-15 Mt, and 3-10 Mt, respectively. Human and environmental impacts can be seen through the changing state of waste generation and handling. As a response, China has led the world to hazardous waste management and recovery lineups through resource efficiency and recycling. Finally, we also try to draw a coherent roadmap for future direction and associated policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hospital size distribution, i.e., the uneven allocation of healthcare resources between hospitals of different size classes, significantly impacts healthcare equality and efficiency and challenges healthcare governance. Yet, its variation is inadequately explained by two prevalent approaches to size distribution – the statistical approach merely works on statistical patterns, while the economic approach has difficulties in calculating hospital cost-returns. This study provides an alternative – a geographical approach – to demystify hospital size distribution. Incorporating the distinctiveness of healthcare into George Stigler's (1958) classic survivor analysis of firm size distribution, we conceptualize hospital size distribution as the result of hospitals' interactions with their socio-economic-technical environment in a defined area, and thus its pattern and variation could be understood through its coevolution with geographical contexts. We substantiate this idea with a study on China's provincial hospital size distributions between 2002 and 2019. During this period, hospitals with 0–99 beds maintained a stable proportion, while the size class of 800+ beds grew significantly, in contrast to the reduction in the size class of 100–799 beds. Cluster analysis identifies four clusters of provinces dominated by different hospital size classes after healthcare delivery reform in 2012. Cross-sectional time-series regression models find evolving impacts from market power, government intervention, and advancement of medical technology. We also offer a novel approach to understanding healthcare resource distribution by examining the structure rather than merely the number of healthcare resources. • Hospital size distribution significantly impacts healthcare equality and efficiency. • A geographical approach is developed to detect hospital size distribution. • This approach overcomes deficiencies in the statistical and economic approaches. • The evolution and variation of China's provincial hospital size distribution are examined. • Introducing a novel way to study healthcare resource distribution by examining healthcare delivery structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the threshold effect of firm size on technological innovation using panel data from 2007 to 2012 for listed enterprises in China's manufacturing sector. Design/methodology/approach: Considering the aim of research question is to examine the nonlinear relationship, this paper utilizes the threshold regression proposed by Hansen's (2000). Findings: Based on a threshold regression model using panel data from 2007 to 2012 for listed enterprises in China's manufacturing sector, we find a series of new results. This nonlinear relationship is under the restrictions and impacts of various factors, such as industry characteristics and government subsidies. The results suggest that the threshold regression model well explains the complicated nonlinear relationship and transition process, and it can also shed light on management practice and policy. Originality/value: There are categorical arguments regarding why firm size is not as effective as before in explaining the monotonic principle of industrial innovation, especially for establishing an effective industrial policy in a particular situation. One of the important reasons is that we have begun to adopt a new perspective from the nonlinear view on the relationship between firm size and industrial innovation. In this study, we have examined the threshold effect of firm size on industrial technological innovation, which is the most representative nonlinear relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study performed a comparative analysis of changes in the operating status of initial surviving disaster‐stricken businesses and non‐disaster‐stricken businesses in Lushan County, China, after a devastating earthquake on 20 April 2013. It used a logistic regression model to explore the key factors associated with 'post‐disaster continued business operation' in the long term. Field data were collected from 1,078 businesses and questionnaire data from 263 small businesses between 2013 and 2017. The results indicate that a higher proportion of initial surviving disaster‐stricken businesses than non‐disaster‐stricken businesses managed to remain operational in each observation period. The continued operation of disaster‐stricken businesses after the earthquake was positively associated with the owner's age, previous disaster experience, pre‐disaster financial conditions, closure duration, and borrowing money from family or friends. A negative association was found with the size of the business. The findings serve as a vital reference for strategies to promote post‐disaster continued business operation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Innovation efficiency is an important index to measure the innovation performance of high-tech enterprises. Numerous researches have been conducted on innovation efficiency at national, regional, and sectoral levels, while there are comparatively few studies on the innovation efficiency of high-tech small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from a micro perspective. Therefore, innovation efficiency of 251 high-tech SMEs listed in China from 2012 to 2015 is measured with the super-SBM model in this paper. The results suggest that the overall innovation efficiency is low but shows an upward trend. In addition, the antecedents of innovation efficiency are explored using the panel regression model and the conclusions are as follows: (1) government subsidies, ownership concentration, and market competition deter enterprise innovation efficiency, and the impact of ownership concentration is found to be the most significant; (2) firm size and asset-liability ratio bear positively on enterprise innovation efficiency, with the effect of asset-liability ratio being greater; (3) firm age has significantly positive effects on scale efficiency but not on innovation efficiency and pure technical efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Innovation efficiency is an important index to measure the innovation performance of high-tech enterprises. Numerous researches have been conducted on innovation efficiency at national, regional, and sectoral levels, while there are comparatively few studies on the innovation efficiency of high-tech small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from a micro perspective. Therefore, innovation efficiency of 251 high-tech SMEs listed in China from 2012 to 2015 is measured with the super-SBM model in this paper. The results suggest that the overall innovation efficiency is low but shows an upward trend. In addition, the antecedents of innovation efficiency are explored using the panel regression model and the conclusions are as follows: (1) government subsidies, ownership concentration, and market competition deter enterprise innovation efficiency, and the impact of ownership concentration is found to be the most significant; (2) firm size and asset-liability ratio bear positively on enterprise innovation efficiency, with the effect of asset-liability ratio being greater; (3) firm age has significantly positive effects on scale efficiency but not on innovation efficiency and pure technical efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the effect of entrepreneurial satisfaction on personal initiative using a sample of 581 entrepreneurs in China. Entrepreneurial satisfaction was classified into 2 dimensions: satisfaction with income and satisfaction with firm size. The moderating roles of institutional trust and industry attractiveness were examined. We found that entrepreneur's personal initiative was lower for those who were more satisfied with their entrepreneurial progress, particularly satisfaction with firm size. Regarding the contingency effect, industry attractiveness assuaged the negative relationship between entrepreneurial satisfaction and personal initiative, but institutional trust did not. The study promotes understanding about Chinese entrepreneurial behaviors and has relevant practical implications for policymakers and new venture management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article provides new empirical evidence on the patterns of firm entry across sectors and space. Based on Pavitt's four manufacturing industry categories—supplier-dominated, scale-intensive, specialized suppliers, and knowledge-based—we use China's firm-level database, covering all manufacturing firms with sales above 5 million RMB from 1998 to 2008, to investigate the relation between spatial patterns of new entry firms and industrial structure change and firm heterogeneity. Based on our analysis, there are three key findings. First, industrial structure change plays an important role in influencing the sectoral pattern of new firm entry. Second, the transformation from a supplier-dominated industry to a scale-intensive industry from 1998 to 2008 in China has largely influenced spatial patterns of new entry firms (mainly spatial agglomeration and entry similarity between regions). Third, the heterogeneity of firms (mainly firm ownership, firm size, and technological relatedness) affected the location choice of new entry firms. Based on our findings, we conclude that the importance of industrial structure change and the heterogeneity of firms in revealing the spatial pattern of new entry firms should receive more attention. Key Words: China, firm entry, firm heterogeneity, industrial structure change, sectoral and spatial pattern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study tests the impact of carbon neutrality initiatives on shareholder value and explores how equity returns achieved as a result of carbon neutrality vary across operating environments. Based on 226 carbon neutrality announcements made between 2017 and 2021, we conducted an event study to estimate the impact of carbon neutrality initiatives on Chinese firms' shareholder value. Under the opportunity-motivation-ability (OMA) framework, we further analyzed the heterogeneous effects of distinctive firm characteristics (social rating and firm size), in which carbon neutrality announcements represented opportunity, social rating represented motivation, and firm size represented ability. We further demonstrated how the announcement characteristics and industry differences affected stock market responses. The results indicate that carbon neutrality initiatives have a significant average abnormal return of 0.99% on the announcement date and a positive long-term impact on shareholder value. This equity return is more pronounced for smaller firms with higher social ratings, and the stock market reacts less positively to firms that announce carbon neutrality initiatives in social responsibility reports. The stock market does not react strongly to manufacturing firms' carbon neutrality initiatives. The study provides some important insights toward the CSR-firm performance debate by providing a new measurement of CSR (i.e. carbon neutrality initiative) and examining the relation from an OMA perspective and looking into some contingency factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This study explores asymmetric effects of monetary policy on firm scale at different firm size levels. We find that Chinese firms respond to raising benchmark lending interest rates and deposit reserve requirements by decreasing their scales. Our quantile regression results also indicate that larger firms respond more strongly to both policy instruments by adjusting their scales to a greater degree than smaller firms. Moreover, SOEs react less strongly to policy changes than non-SOEs at all firm size distribution. The impact of monetary policy on firm scale is also stronger after commercial banks having greater leeway in setting interest rates. Highlights • Explore asymmetric effects of monetary policy on firm scale at different firm size levels. • Chinese firms respond to raising benchmark interest rates and deposit reserve ratios by decreasing their scales. • Larger firms respond more strongly to both policy instruments by adjusting their scales to a greater degree. • SOEs react less strongly to monetary policy changes than privately controlled listed firms at all firm size distribution. • The impact of monetary policy on firm scale is stronger when banks having greater leeway in setting interest rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the rapid development of global financial markets, not only is the development of financial products changeable, but financial institutions also move towards internationalization and enlargement, expecting to achieve the economies of scale to enhance the profits and the international competitiveness. Financial institutions therefore request to open up cross-industry management to gradually change the restrictions to the business control of financial institutions. Secondary Data Analysis is applied in this study to collect data from bank holding companies in Fujian Province. Based on the research analysis and conclusion, suggestions are proposed to seek for survival opportunities in competitive environments and to create advantages for the success of bank holding companies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Construction industries have significant impacts on the economy, society and environment. To transform construction industry towards sustainability, construction enterprises' perceptions and performance on sustainability needs to be understood and evaluated, which has not be fully explored by existing studies. This paper holistically examines the Chinese construction enterprises’ attitude towards and performance on various aspects of sustainability (e.g. the economic, social and environmental aspects) in order to identify those aspects the firms perceive to be the most and least important and those aspects the firms perform best and worst on. The associations among the sustainability attitude, sustainability performance, and firm size are also explored. The findings show that quality management and customer service are perceived as the most important as well as the best-performed aspects by the firms while supporting community development is the least important and worst-performed aspect. Sustainability attitude is positively correlated with performance, and larger firms tend to have better sustainability performance than that of small ones. However, larger construction firms do not necessarily perceive sustainability more important. This study provides a useful reference for policy makers and researchers to understand how sustainability is perceived and implemented by the Chinese construction firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The size and number of firms in a region represent key characteristics of that regional economic ecosystem, but few studies have linked such characteristics with the stringency of local environmental regulation. In this study, we discuss the effects of local firm scale on environmental regulation and its mechanism, and the optimal strategic choices theoretically and empirically for environmental regulation in regions with different firm scale. We find that when government capacity is insufficient, regional environmental regulation will be relatively more stringent when dealing with fewer but larger firms because of the government scale effect. When government capacity is sufficient, firm size has no influence on environmental regulation. Our results are robust and offer insights for government decision makers to improve local environmental regulation efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Income inequality in China has been much documented and debated. However, one important aspect of income inequality - social insurance inequality - has been largely understudied. We use a large national panel of firm data to examine the possible influence of various firm characteristics on the inequalities in social insurance participation and generosity in the period 2004-07. Our findings reveal substantial ownership sector and regional gaps in social insurance provision by firms, with the private domestic sector and those in the central region lagging behind. Unionized firms, larger firms, and firms with greater market shares also tend to provide better social insurance to their employees. While being an exporting firm is linked with greater social insurance participation and generosity, being a purely exporting firm, however, is associated with reduced social insurance generosity. Lastly, highly educated workers receive substantially better social insurance coverage than their less educated peers. These social insurance inequalities are highly relevant as China pushes forward with establishing a unified social insurance system across urban-rural boundaries, ownership sectors and industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring the drivers of declining energy intensity is necessary in order to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy in China. To date, studies have typically adopted case analysis to link enterprise features and energy-saving performance. The impact of internal industrial configuration in terms of size and ownership structure on aggregate energy intensity remains to be examined. To fill this research gap, this paper tests the impact of the internal structure of industries on city-level energy intensity, by employing a unique panel dataset of 283 cities for the period 2005 to 2010. The Driscoll-Kraay method and instrumental variable are used to treat residual cross-sectional dependence and endogeneity, respectively. Results suggest that small-scale enterprises exerts a negative effect on energy intensity. A 1% increase in the output-value proportion of small-sized firms will lead to a decrease in total energy intensity of 0.067%. In contrast, the same change by medium enterprises will raise energy intensity by 0.031%. A negative and/or non-significant coefficient suggests that for most energy-intensive large and state-owned enterprises, China's 2006 top-down energy-saving regulation has been quite effective in targeting key energy-intensive enterprises in China. The findings reveal that state-owned enterprises (SOEs) can act as promoters of, rather than barriers to, low-carbon policy implementation in China. Given that the effectiveness of energy-saving regulation will be undermined as a result of diluted regulatory strength in each enterprise, market-oriented energy price reform is proposed as a fundamental driver for guaranteeing a continual decline in energy intensity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Among the phenomena in economics that are not yet well-understood is the fat-tailed (power-law) distribution of firm sizes in the world's economies. In the present paper we discuss different mechanisms suggested in the literature to explain this distribution of firm sizes. The paper uses the China Industrial Enterprises Database to study the distribution (firm size in terms of the number of employees, capital, and gross profit) for the provinces of China for the years 1998–2008. We estimate the power-law distribution and confirm its plausibility using the KS test and the log-likelihood ratio vs. lognormal and exponential distributions. The analysis on regional levels allows an assessment of regional effects on differences in the distribution; we discuss possible explanations for the observed patterns in the light of the recent regional economic development and the economic reforms in the PRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the size distribution of exporting and non-exporting firms in a panel of Chinese provinces. The power law exponents of exporting firms are significantly less than those of non-exporting firms. The average power law exponents fell from 0.74 in 1998 to 0.64 in 2007 for exporting firms, and from 1.03 in 1998 to 0.83 in 2007 for non-exporting firms. Further analysis showed that credit constraints have a significant negative effect on the exponents of the size distribution of exporting firms, suggesting that smaller firms are more credit-constrained than larger firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After loosening the hypothesis of bank size, this paper developed an improved three-bank model to analyze the relation between bank size and its systemic importance. By introducing L function, multivariate extreme theory and three indexes of banking systemic importance, the paper analyzed the impact of size on banks' systemic importance, and found that bank size is the necessary condition of the systemic importance, but not the sufficient condition. In addition, this study conducted an empirical analysis by examining the trading data of 14 listed commercial banks in China. The results were basically in accord with our theoretical prediction. Both the theory and empirical results point out that the size has played a critical role in banks' systemic importance and its impact would be weakened as soon as the size reaches some threshold. This study has theoretical and practical value for the identification and supervision of banks' systemic importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper considers the macroscopic and microscopic statistical features of the top 500 firms in China, the United States and the world, denoted as China 500 (CH500), Fortune 500 (US500) and Fortune Global 500 (FG500). From a macroscopic perspective, the firm size distribution of each category, when measured by revenue, is steadily distributed over the observed period, even during periods of financial crises. As is evidenced by the Gini coefficient, divergences between firm scales are most significant for the CH500. From a microscopic perspective, the underlying micro-dynamics are volatile and often turbulent due to the exit and entry of firms as well as shifts in their revenues and ranks. Such fluctuations, or mobility, are visualized in rank/revenue/share clocks. We also propose a revenue/rank/share mobility index that is a quantitative measurement of mobility. Among these, we find that the share mobility acts as an effective indicator of economic status; where there is a share mobility spike, there is an ailing economy. The share mobility indexes indicate that the 2008 Financial Crisis had little impact on the Chinese economy, while it triggered violent changes in the top 500 firms in the United States and the world. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

We choose cross-shareholding A-share firms listed on China's stock market from 2005 to 2008 as our sample. Through empirical test, we find positive and significant relationship between the historical stock returns of shareholder firms and the current returns of the firms who hold stocks. By constructing a zero-investment portfolio rebalanced monthly, we capture abnormal return of 2.01% per month, which is significant after an array of adjustments. However, the significance of equity-link momentum returns are sensitive to various attention proxies, such as firm size, past performance, turnover and mutual funds' joint holding measurement, which is consistent with the hypothesis of limited attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the effects of market-incentive environmental regulations on corporate energy efficiency. Using the SO 2 emissions trading system in 2007 in China as a quasi-natural experiment, we employ the difference-in-difference-in-differences approach based on Chinese firm-level data from 2003 to 2010, and empirically examine whether the emissions trading system in China has achieved a win-win situation between environmental effects and energy efficiency. The results show that the implementation of the emissions trading system does improve the energy efficiency of firms. A plausible mechanism appears to be the strengthening of front-end prevention of firms, through which firms reduce their usage of primary energy to transform energy structure, thus improving their energy efficiency. The heterogeneity analysis shows that the results are more pronounced for private and export-oriented firms, firms with larger sizes, firms in the lifecycle of maturity or decline and firms that are capital-intensive. This study provides clear implications by shedding light on the effects of market-incentive environmental regulations on energy efficiency. • The impact of emission trading system (ETS) on energy efficiency is examined. • The Porter effect of a market-incentive environmental regulations is confirmed. • Difference-in-difference-in-differences approach are used for causal estimations. • Mechanism checks suggest that ETS can improve energy efficiency by a decline in coal consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: By analyzing the data of top 500 Chinese firms from the year 2002 to 2007, we reveal that their revenues and ranks obey the Zipf’s law with exponent of 1 for each year. This result confirms the universality of firm size character which has been presented in many other empirical works, since China possesses a unique ideological and political system. We offer an explanation of it based on a simple economic model which takes production and capital accumulation into account. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The growth of China's tourism hotel industry has been accompanied by declining profitability. Using cross-province tourism hotels data of 2000, this study attempts to empirically quantify the impact of operation scale on hotel performance. Controlling for the effect of overcapacity, this study found a significant and positive association between operation scale and profitability. The findings suggest that to improve performance, the Chinese tourism hotel industry needs not only to reduce the overcapacity but also reverse the property-downsizing trend and pursue economies of scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the financing conditions and institutional failure of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) in China's transition from a planned economy to a socialist market economy. Comparison of laws and regulations that provide different implicit and explicit definitions of small business in the U.S. and China; Characteristics of SME in China; Contributions of such businesses to the improvement of the rate of employment and economic growth of the country; Challenges of the development of SME in the region.

In the context of the popular development of the low-carbon economy, the "high energy consumption, high pollution, and high emissions" of the manufacturing industry have resulted in unprecedented difficulties in the development of this industry. To achieve nationally determined contribution targets, China has formulated a series of low carbon development plans for heavy industry to reduce carbon emissions. Among these, low-carbon technological innovation has been used a new means for manufacturing enterprises to achieve sustainable development, which is highly valued by management practice. Taking Chinese manufacturing companies as an example, the present study investigates the mediating effect of green core competence on the relationship between low-carbon technological innovation and enterprise performance and evaluates the moderating impact of firm size on this relationship. In this study, 438 valid data points were empirically analyzed, and the results indicate that low-carbon technological innovation significantly and positively affects enterprise performance of manufacturing. Green core competence plays a mediating role in the positive effect of low-carbon technological innovation on enterprise performance. Firm size has a positive moderating effect on the relationship between low-carbon technological innovation and enterprise performance. Meanwhile, firm size also moderates the relationship between low-carbon technological innovation and green core competence. Namely, a larger firm size correlates with a more positive effect on the cultivation of green core capabilities from the low-carbon technological innovation of manufacturing companies and in stronger enterprise performance. Finally, this work provides constructive guidance for Chinese manufacturing companies on how to practice low-carbon production and achieve sustainable development. [Display omitted] • Low-carbon technological innovation promotes enterprise performance of Chinese manufacturing. • We examined the model using a large sample of Chinese manufacturers. • This relationship is partially mediated by green core competence, and moderated by firm size. • Firm size exerts a positive moderating effect on low-carbon technological innovation and green core competence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In scientific journals published all over the world, the economic performance of firms with ISO 14001 certification is a highly controversial topic. This controversy is particularly evident in developing countries. With regard to this topic, we maintain a neutral position in this paper. Using the data of 63 firms from the Shenzhen and Shanghai Stock Exchanges in China during the period of 2003–2018, and employing the difference-in-difference method, we analyze the influence of ISO 14001 certification on firms' financial performance. We also examine the moderating effect of firm size and age, considering the time factor. In addition, we test the influence of ISO 14001 certification on exports, using China's provincial data from 2008 to 2018. The results indicate that ISO 14001 certification negatively affects the financial performance of firms; also, the negative effects decrease in line with the increase of certification time. Firm size and age are positively related to the relationship between ISO 14001 certification and a firm's financial performance. At the same time, ISO 14001 certification can effectively improve a firm's competitiveness in the international market. The study combines two opposing positions found in existing literature regarding the effectiveness of ISO 14001 certification. The results show that ISO 14001 certification will ultimately have a positive impact on China's economy, but that influence should be correctly evaluated in terms of the effect on small and medium-sized enterprises. Some suggestions for firm managers and the government are then discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Characterization of hazardous chemical accidents during hot season in China. • High temperature is one of the main causes of hazardous chemical accidents. • Combustibles and explosives caused most of the accidents during hot season. • Most of hazardous chemical accidents were caused by human errors during hot season. • Provision of useful information for improving chemical safety during hot season. Because high temperature is one of the main causes of hazardous chemical accidents, these accidents frequently occur in China during hot season (from June to September). Understanding the historical accidents is important for accident prevention and risk mitigation. However, presently, no statistical analysis on the characteristics of China's hazardous chemical accidents that occurred during hot season is available. Thus, by utilising data from official sources, a statistical investigation on 76 serious hazardous chemical accidents that occurred during hot season in China (1989–2019) was performed in terms of seven aspects: region where the accident occurred, type of accident, types of hazardous chemicals, links of occurrence, size of enterprises, direct cause, and period when the accident occurred. Moreover, according to the statistical results, this paper proposes some potential countermeasures and suggestions to prevent hazardous chemical accidents during hot season in China. This study can provide useful information for preventing hazardous chemical accidents and strengthening preventive measures in chemical plants during hot season in China and in other countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Supported by preferential policies and government funding, the technological innovation of China's photovoltaic industry has been improved greatly. As a capital-intensive practice, will innovation activities in China's photovoltaic industry be affected by the continuous decline of government subsidies in recent years? Therefore, it is essential to study the relationship between government subsidies and innovation performance of Chinese photovoltaic industry. However, there is less empirical research on this topic. In this context, this study aims to supplement existing studies by proposing a micro-level perspective to measure the innovation performance based on the data of Chinese listed photovoltaic companies from 2012 to 2016. Moreover, we assess the effects of government subsidies and other influencing factors on innovation performance. The findings reveal that, firstly, the average innovation efficiency of Chinese listed photovoltaic companies is over 0.9, which is relatively high. Secondly, government subsidies make a positive influence on innovation performance. Thirdly, financial leverage and ownership concentration have significant positive impacts, while firm size has a significant negative effect on the innovation efficiency of China's photovoltaic industry. The findings will serve as a reference for policy-making to promote further technological progress and sustainable development of China's photovoltaic industry. • This paper estimates the innovation performance of China's photovoltaic industry based on the micro perspective. • This paper conducts a comprehensive analysis by a two-stage DEA-Tobit model. • The overall innovation efficiency of Chinese photovoltaic enterprises is high relatively but still has progress potential. • Government subsidies make a positive influence on technological innovation efficiency of China's photovoltaic industry. • The findings will serve as a reference for policy-making of government and enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present paper is to determine whether launching social media accounts affects the performance of a firm, assess the impact of firms' different social media input intensity on their performance, and identify whether there is a linear or nonlinear relationship between firm performance and social media input intensity. To this end, this paper takes panel data, matching data for private listed firms from Sina Weibo and the China Stock Market & Accounting Research Database between the years of 2010 and 2014 as an example to empirically investigate the abovementioned issues. The results show that: (1) launching Weibo accounts does indeed enhance the performance of firms; (2) greater Weibo input intensity leads to a greater improvement in performance; (3) Weibo input intensity has a nonlinear impact on firm performance, and, more specifically, there is an inverted U-shaped relationship between input intensity and performance; and (4) firm size has a significantly positive influence on the relationship between Weibo input intensity and firm performance, but the type of real controller of firm does not have a statistically significant impact on the relationship between the two. This paper innovatively investigates the nonlinear impact of social media input intensity on firm performance, while previous work investigated only their linear relationship. Another contribution of this work is that the existing customer-oriented literature mainly utilized questionnaire data, which may be subject to human manipulation, while this paper collected Weibo data through data mining, making the research more comprehensive and accurate. • The paper employs social media data to conduct comprehensive research. • This paper proposes a new index to demonstrate the impact on a firm's performance. • Engaging in social media does indeed improve a firm's performance. • A firm's social media input will not always enhance its performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the squeeze effect of economic financialization on capital accumulation under the background of deepening financial trend in China. Using the dataset of listed companies in China's manufacturing industry from 2007 to 2016, we find that economic financialization leads to the alienation of enterprises' investment behavior. With the economic financialization deepening, companies will invest more in financial assets than in productive assets. The reason is that as expenditure in firm dividend, and profit or borrowing interests is growing, the share of their income from the financial assets is steadily increasing. We also find that the effect varies with companies size: the smaller the size of the enterprises, the stronger squeeze effect of economic financialization on capital accumulation. • This study investigates the squeeze effect of economic financialization on capital accumulation in China. • Using the dataset of listed companies in China's manufacturing industry from 2007 to 2016, we find that economic financialization leads to the alienation of enterprises' investment behavior. • With the economic financialzation deepening, companies will invest more in financial assets than in productive assets. • We also find that the effect varies with companies size: the smaller the size of the enterprises, the stronger squeeze effect of economic financialization on capital accumulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyzed a database comprising more than 100 thousands firms over the period 1998–2008. It was found that both asset and employee could be well fitted with power-law distribution, even firms were classified in different industries. Meanwhile, the growth rate distribution has a Laplace form, which is estimated by Subbotin family function, and it is also robust when firms are in categories. By analyzing annual logarithmic growth rates, we can see that the standard deviation has a power-law shape on both asset and employee, as researchers have found in western countries. In addition, there exists a power-law dependence of the standard deviation on the age of firms, which means that the growth of firms also rely on the years that they have opened. • The firm size distribution in China was studied by employing the empirical data. • The Laplace form distribution of firms' growth rate was estimated by Subbotin family function. • The standard deviation distribution of growth rate were studied with assets and employees of these firms. • To study the correlation between firms' growth rate and their ages, the standard deviation of growth rate on the ages of firms was analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]