Abstract: The 18th Fifth Plenary Session of the Communist Party of China (CPC) solidified green development as a paramount avenue for China’s economic and social transition, crucial for sustainability and human health. Green economic efficiency emerges as a pivotal metric, reflecting the delicate balance between economic progress and environmental stewardship. Hence, understanding the nuances of China’s green economic efficiency, especially its recent trends and transformations, bears profound theoretical and policy significance in navigating the intricate interplay between economic growth and environmental protection.
Green economic efficiency signifies the ability of an economic system to generate maximal output while minimizing environmental costs, under stable or reduced input levels. Scholars have predominantly utilized methodologies such as stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) or data envelopment analysis (DEA) to gauge China’s green economic efficiency intensity over recent decades. Building upon this foundation, the SSBM-DEA model has been instrumental in addressing input-output slackness and unforeseen outputs in green economic efficiency assessments. Moreover, research efforts have delved into localized evaluations of green economic efficiency and its interactions with various factors such as financial aggregation, economic concentration, and environmental regulations.
However, a comprehensive review of existing literature underscores several critical gaps. Primarily, the focus has predominantly gravitated towards precise computations of green economic efficiency intensity, overlooking a nuanced understanding of its distinctive characteristics and evolving trends, which is imperative for both theoretical discourse and practical applications. Additionally, research perspectives have tended to be either regionally specific or centered on national aggregates, neglecting the spatial interdependencies between regions, thus constraining the comparative analysis and insights into regional disparities. Moreover, since the inception of China’s “high-quality economic development” paradigm in 2018, there has been a dearth of studies examining the post-2018 dynamics and emergent features of China’s green economic efficiency landscape, thus warranting urgent investigation.
To address these lacunae, this study comprehensively investigates the spatiotemporal dynamics, spatial disparities, and convergence trends of China’s regional green economic efficiency from 2000 to 2020. Employing a multidimensional approach encompassing Kernel density estimation, standard deviation ellipse analysis, Dagum Gini coefficient and its decomposition, and β-convergence analysis, this research seeks to offer a holistic understanding of China’s green economic efficiency.
The findings yield crucial insights into China’s green economic landscape. Temporally, China’s green economic efficiency exhibits cyclicality, transitioning towards a new phase of ascent, albeit with concurrent resurgence of regional disparities. Spatially, there is a discernible shift in the centroid of green economic efficiency towards the intersection of the Yellow River Basin and the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, accompanied by an eastward drift since 2018. Moreover, regional disparities emerge as significant drivers of overall disparities, with the northeastern, eastern coastal, Yellow River Basin, and middle reaches of the Yangtze River regions being primary contributors to increased regional disparities since 2018. Furthermore, β-convergence analysis indicates a trend towards convergence to higher values, signifying a period of positive momentum and opportunities for China’s green economic efficiency. Nonetheless, heterogeneity in regional convergence rates and influencing factors necessitates tailored policy interventions to maximize efficiency gains.
Furthermore, this study underscores the need to address the emerging challenges and leverage the opportunities presented by China’s evolving green economic landscape. Notably, the imperative to foster coordinated efforts across eastern, central, and western regions to achieve balanced and sustainable green economic development cannot be overstated. Policy recommendations include promoting a staggered green economic efficiency development model, addressing regional disparities, and leveraging the momentum of convergence to propel China’s green economic efficiency to higher levels. In conclusion, this study contributes to a nuanced understanding of China’s green economic efficiency landscape, offering valuable theoretical insights and practical policy guidance for navigating the complex nexus between economic development and environmental sustainability in China’s pursuit of high-quality growth.

Key words: green economic efficiency, temporal and spatial distribution and evolution characteristics, regional differences, convergence

摘要： 精准施策进一步提升中国绿色经济效率的前提是,充分掌握中国绿色经济效率发展趋势和特征。本文从时、空分布演变、地区差异和收敛性角度,对中国绿色经济效率的特征,特别是近年来的新趋势和新变化进行了分析。研究表明,中国绿色经济效率的:(1)时间演变趋势表现出“由周期性衰减向新爬坡期出现”的特点,当前正在经历新一轮的绿色经济效率上升期,但同时也面临“地区极化现象重新出现,地区间差距再次增大”的问题。(2)空间格局动态变迁呈现“重心位于黄河中游及长江中游交叉区”的特点,且“由东南向西北方向移动”的趋势,但2018年以来,其重心有“再次东移”趋势。(3)区域间差异是差距增大的主要贡献因素,其中东北、东部沿海、黄河中游、长江中游地区对2018年以来的区域性差异加剧起到最重要的推动作用。(4)全国及绝大部分综合经济区区域性绿色经济效率表现出“向高值稳态收敛”的趋势,具有显著的“追赶效应”,但其收敛速度和影响因素存在地区异质性。

关键词: 绿色经济效率, 时空分布演变特征, 地区差异, 收敛性