Suppliers’ bargaining power mainly comes from their market position or top supplier status. However, it is also affected by the horizontal competition from top supplier size homogeneity based on the purchasing proportion of a buyer. Using a sample of listed companies in China, we find an inverted U-shaped relationship between the supplier size homogeneity with shared customers and trade credit provisions. As size homogeneity increases, suppliers may increase (decrease) trade credit provision to expand sales (for cash income). That is, based on the degree of supplier size homogeneity, the homogeneity may strengthen or weaken the supplier competition effect. We also find that if upstream and downstream firms have associated relationships, or if the business environment is poor, the competition effect from supplier size homogeneity is not obvious, whereas the weak financing ability of buyer promotes the supplier competition. In addition, the competition effect from supplier size homogeneity is not observed in state-owned firms.

There are large regional disparities in relation to the development of digital finance in China. This study expands on the human–land relationship to analyze the impact of terrain relief on digital finance adoption using China Household Finance Survey data. The results show an inverted U-shaped relationship. Further, mechanism analysis indicates that terrain relief influences the wealth creation environment and stimulates the likelihood of entrepreneurship, especially through small and medium-sized enterprises. In addition, the impact is more pronounced in rural and western areas. These findings provide insights enabling the development of a more inclusive financial system.

Overseas compliance management is crucial for multinationals to operate with high character, but existing research has paid little attention to emerging multinationals’ overseas misconduct. Focusing on different directions and the interaction of the institutional gap and aspiration gap, we conducted an empirical analysis of a sample of Chinese multinationals who engaged in outward direct investment from 2009 to 2021 and found that in the case of a negative institutional gap, there is a positive linear correlation between a positive/negative aspiration gap and overseas misconduct. In the case of apositive institutional gap, there is a U-shaped relationship between a positive aspiration gap and overseas misconduct, and an inverted U-shaped relationship between a negative aspiration gap and overseas misconduct. Research conclusions bridge the divergence of the institutional paradox and aspiration paradox, provide a nuanced understanding on overseas misconduct, and distinguish different situations to guide emerging multinationals to operate in compliance overseas.

The caliber of export products is a microcosmic reffection of economic development quality. This study seeks to elucidate the inffuence of environmental regulation on product quality, integrating the role of the skill premium as shaped by environmental regulation within a Dixit-Stiglitz CES production function model. Additionally, we empirically scrutinize the interplay between environmental regulation, skill premium, and product quality, utilizing Chinese customs export data in conjunction with data from listed companies spanning 2003-2015. The conclusions drawn from our theoretical analysis and empirical veriffcation reveal an inverted U-shaped relationship between environmental regulation and product quality, which is tempered by the skill premium. Moreover, a signiffcant positive correlation exists between environmental regulation and the skill premium. Similarly, the relationship between the skill premium and product quality manifests an inverted U-shape. Notably, an elevated skill premium markedly bolsters the enhancement of product quality through green innovation. These insights underscore the need for balanced environmental regulations and strategic investment in skilled labor to augment product quality. This serves as a valuable compass for policymakers and businesses endeavoring for green innovation and high-quality, sustainable economic growth.

Many studies suggest a positive and monotonic relationship between technological progress and wage income inequality since 1980s for industrialized economies. We examine this topic in the context of the Chinese economy where new technologies like automation, AI and digitalization have witnessed worldís most rapid growth in the last decade. Surprsingly, we Önd an inverted U-Shaped relationship - a "Digital Kuznets Curve", using a panel dataset constructed in line with the newly published "2021 Categorization of Core Industries of Digital Economy". We then set out a task-based growth model with heterogenous human capital and occupational choice, and show that this hump-shaped relationship can emerge either by introducing an erosion e§ect of digitalization on worker ability that increasingly counterveils the skill-biasing e§ect, or by directly adding a dynamic learning cost that captures the externality of digitalization. Our study contributes to the understanding of the nature of digitalization in re-shaping labor market structure.

As a product of the integration of traditional finance and Internet technology, digital finance plays an important role in micro enterprise innovation and even macroeconomic development. Based on the data of China's A-share listed companies from 2011 to 2018, this paper explores the effect of the development of digital finance on enterprise innovation. The research finds that there is an inverted U-shaped relationship between the development of digital finance and enterprise innovation. Further research shows that this inverted U-shaped impact of digital finance is stronger on strategic innovation of enterprises, suggesting that enterprises pay more attention to the "quantity" rather than "quality" of innovation. Finally, the inflection point of the inverted U-shaped relationship is brought forward by the industry competition and media pressure. This paper not only enriches the research on the relationship between digital finance and enterprise innovation, but also provides a theoretical basis for the development of digital finance and the improvement of financial regulatory framework.