迈向共同富裕的制度型开放效应研究——基于自由贸易试验区的证据

Effects of Institutional Openness on the Path to Common Prosperity: Evidence from China"s Free Trade Pilot Zones

摘要:

内部制度创新与外部规则嵌入是地区间高质量共建开放型经济体制的制度基础，由此延伸的制度型开放类政策沟通体制是推动共同富裕实现的重要驱动力。研究将自由贸易试验区政策视为一项准自然实验，以我国2005-2023年地级市面板数据为观测样本，采用多时点双重差分模型探究制度型开放对共同富裕的影响与作用机制。结果表明：直接影响结果显示，制度型开放能够显著推进共同富裕的实现，提升效果稳健且具有动态叠加特征；作用机制检验表明，制度型开放的政策效果通过促进数实融合、加速技术创新与扩大人力资本存量等机制得到显著增强；进一步分析表明，该政策效果会因不同地区的政策执行能力、经济活跃水平与产业集聚基础差异而呈现显著分化，并且共同富裕水平的提升缩小了地区间的消费差异，缓解了消费不平等困境。研究发现制度软环境推进共同富裕的重要作用，对深化政策制度创新和完善社会主义市场经济体制具有一定的借鉴意义。

Abstract:

Institutional opening-up, characterized by internal institutional innovation and the alignment with international economic and trade rules, provides a foundational framework for the collaborative development of a high-level open economy. This study examines the implementation of China’s Pilot Free Trade Zones (FTZs) as a quasi-natural experiment to explore the impact of institutional opening-up on common prosperity. Utilizing panel data from Chinese prefecture-level cities spanning 2005 to 2023, the research employs a staggered difference-in-differences (DID) model to identify the underlying mechanisms and effects. The empirical results demonstrate that institutional opening-up significantly advances common prosperity, with the effect exhibiting both temporal stability and cumulative growth. Mechanism analysis reveals that this policy effect is primarily driven by the integration of the digital and real economies, accelerated technological innovation, and the accumulation of human capital. Further heterogeneity analysis suggests that the policy’s impact varies significantly based on regional implementation capacities, levels of economic activity, and industrial agglomeration foundations. Crucially, the advancement of common prosperity is found to effectively narrow inter-regional consumption gaps and mitigate consumption inequality. These findings underscore the pivotal role of institutional frameworks in fostering equitable growth, providing practical policy implications for deepening systemic innovation and refining the market economic system.