In this study, we empirically analyze the impact of the effects of digital inclusive finance (DIF) on high-quality economic development in Chinese prefecture-level cities. We find the following conclusions: first, the total index and sub-index of DIF can promote high-quality economic development. Second, DIF significantly promotes high-quality economic development by narrowing the urban-rural income gap and alleviating financing constraints. Third, DIF is conducive to the improvement of economic quality in neighboring regions.

Corporate philanthropy is increasingly seen as an effective way to promote social equity. This paper estimates the effect of donation tax deduction policy on corporate donations. Using data from Chinese A-share listed companies, we find that the donation tax deduction policy has a significant positive effect on the amount donated. This finding remains robust to a number of robustness tests. Meanwhile, our study also suggests that the policy increases donation participation. Finally, heterogeneity analysis suggests that the effect is significant only for firms with high media attention and political connections. Our findings provide important evidence for the optimizing of social welfare.

The asymmetric dissemination of information among financial firms in the financial market reflects their asymmetric response to the dissemination of both positive and negative information. However, it is worth studying whether this asymmetry will intensify or alleviate under different financial market conditions. Based on high-frequency minute stock price data of Chinese A-share listed financial firms from July 2020 to July 2023, we decompose the good and bad information, as well as the positive and negative volatility information in the return series. We utilize the quantile cross-spectral correlation method to construct an information overflow network at monthly intervals. We use the MVMQ-CAViaR model to estimate the value at risk (VaR) for various quantiles and build a risk spillover network that incorporates both positive and negative tail risk information, using the quantile dynamic SIM-COVAR-TENET model. We calculated the network dissemination efficiency of both good and bad information, including average speed, speed deviation, densest speed, and depth, to explore the changes in the asymmetry of good and bad information dissemination under different financial market conditions. We get that when the financial market is booming, financial firms’ asymmetric response to good and bad information will increase, and the firms will pay more attention to bad information. When the financial market declines, the asymmetric response of financial firms to good and bad information is diminished, and their sensitivity to both positive and negative information is heightened. In addition, the dissemination of bad information by firms in the five sub-financial industries across various markets exacerbates the asymmetric response of other financial firms to good and bad information. More importantly, the release of positive return information, negative volatility information, and highly negative tail risk information by the real estate financial firms all impact the asymmetric response of financial firms to good and bad information in a prosperous financial market. In recessionary financial markets, financial regulators can strategically release positive information to mitigate the decline in the financial market. Conversely, in a booming financial market, financial regulators should be cautious of the negative impact that bad information can have on financial firms, particularly in relation to the excessive growth of the real estate sector and the potential chain reaction of significant adverse events.

Emotions are fundamental elements driving humans’ decision-making and information processing. Fear is one of the most common emotions influencing investors’ behaviors in the stock market. Although many studies have been conducted to explore the impacts of fear on investors’ investment performance and trading behaviors, little is known about factors contributing to and alleviating investors’ fear during the market crash (or extremely volatile periods) and their fear regulation after the crisis. Thus, the current data descriptor provides details of a dataset of 1526 Chinese and Vietnamese investors, a potential resource for researchers to fill in the gap. The dataset was designed and structured based on the information-processing perspective of the Mindsponge Theory and existing evidence in life sciences. The Bayesian Mindsponge Framework (BMF) analytics validated the data. Insights generated from the dataset are expected to help researchers expand the existing literature on behavioral finance and the psychology of fear, improve the investment effectiveness among investors, and inform policymakers on strategies to mitigate the negative impacts of market crashes on the stock market.

This paper investigates the varying impact of government subsidies on corporate investment efficiency using micro-level data from Chinese listed firms. Through meticulous compilation of information on government subsidies revealed in financial statements, and the implementation of an innovative categorization methodology based on the nature and timing of funds (ex-ante versus ex-post), we shed light on the divergent effects of these subsidies. Our findings are as follows: (1) Government subsidies enhance corporate investment efficiency, yet their effects exhibit asymmetry by alleviating underinvestment while exacerbating overinvestment. (2) Functional subsidies exert a stronger influence on investment efficiency compared to selective subsidies. Specifically, functional subsidies prove more effective in addressing underinvestment, but also possess a higher likelihood of exacerbating overinvestment. (3) State ownership, firm size and dividend payments lead to heterogeneity in the effects of subsidies. (4) Corporate financial constraints serve as one of the mechanisms through which subsidies affect investment efficiency. This suggests that firms with easier access to financing may not effectively utilize subsidies, while those facing severe financial constraints are less prone to misusing them.

This study explores how foreign competition impacts the capital structure of domestic firms. While import competition is associated with a decrease in domestic firms’ leverage, we propose a novel perspective concerning the positive effect of inward foreign direct investment (FDI) on leverage. FDI competition can boost demand for debt via productivity spillover to domestic firms, and also increase supply of debt by inducing lenders to herd toward foreign investors. Using Chinese firm-level data, we find that the positive effects of industry inward FDI on domestic firms’ leverage are more pronounced in high-tech industries and industries where foreign investors exhibit a high degree of herding behavior. Our instrument variable approach, employing industry exchange rates and import tariffs, supports these findings. Additionally, we reveal that the positive effect of FDI on local firms’ leverage is amplified when the firms have stronger absorptive capacities, receive foreign capital, and experience more human capital transfers from foreign rivals.

By establishing a labor-retirement model within China’s unique intergenerational support culture and one-child policy, this study provides evidence of the one-child policy’s early effect on individuals’ retirement decisions. This finding highlights a contradiction between the retirement intentions of the 1960s and 1970s generations, who are most affected by the one-child policy, and the delayed retirement policy of Chinese government. Utilizing data from the CHARLS 2011-2018 and employing OLS, IV, and fuzzy cohort DID estimation methods, we observe that only-child parents tend to retire at an earlier age compared to non-only-child parents. This early effect of the one-child policy on retirement decisions can be attributed to intergenerational support for children’s marriage and career, as well as the educational attainments of children, as confirmed by both theoretical and empirical analysis.

This paper aims to investigate the transmission mechanism through which trade policy uncertainty (TPU) impacts bank risk-taking via firms’ capital market performance. The research reveals that TPU significantly affects firms’ capital market performance, leading to reduced stock liquidity, increased stock price crash risk, decreased stock price synchronicity, and lower stock returns. These effects are transmitted to bank risk-taking, resulting in an overall increase in banks’ passive risk-taking and a decrease in their willingness to undertake active risk-taking. Furthermore, we discover that the impact of TPU on bank risk-taking varies across different categories of firms, revealing heterogeneity in this transmission process. This study uncovers the critical mechanism through which TPU propagates in financial markets, offering important theoretical insights and policy implications for understanding and managing financial risk.

This paper focuses on the role of Confucian clan in risk sharing and examines its dynamic impact on the development of the insurance sector. Strikingly, we find that Confucian clan hindered the development of the insurance sector at the initial stage of modern China while it promoted the development of the insurance sector at the current stage of modern China. Further analyses indicate three potential explanations underlying the contrasting results: the increasing risk unpredictability and severity of losses, the migration of clan members, and the influence of Western culture. The risksharing experience in clan groups enhances individuals’ awareness of insurance, which induces them to embrace formal insurance when clan-based risk sharing is incomplete. Our study provides valuable insights into the relation between informal risk sharing and formal insurance.

Interest rate liberalization in China intensifies the exposure of commercial banks' interest rate risks and further increases the difficulty for commercial banks to effectively control interest rate risks, thus putting forward higher requirements for the normal operation and management of commercial banks. With the development of China's financial derivatives market, banking institutions begin to use basic interest rate derivatives to hedge interest rate risks. It is very important to give full play to the maturity transformation Function of commercial banks to enhance the ability of financial services to the real economy. Based on the semi annual unbalanced panel data of 37 listed banks in A-share stock markets from 2006 to 2020, this paper empirically tests the impact of the use of off balance sheet interest rate derivatives on the Maturity Transformation Function of banks in the case of interest rate fluctuations. The empirical results show that: (1) the use of interest rate derivatives helps to weaken the negative impact of interest rate fluctuations on the Maturity Transformation Function of banks. (2) The analysis of the mechanism shows that the use of interest rate derivatives improves the stability of the bank's asset side term structure and liability side term structure, so as to support the effective play of the bank's financial intermediary role. (3) Further analysis shows that the of interest rate derivatives significantly reduces the volatility of bank earnings. This study makes it clear that the use of interest rate derivatives has a positive impact on the commercial banks, which provides evidence for the further development of interest rate derivatives market in China.