The Impact of Multidimensional Distance on Agricultural Exports: Evidence from China Based on the Technological Added Value

Abstract

Agricultural exports are vulnerable to many distance factors such as geographical, cultural, economic and institutional distance. Panel data were collected from 63 countries (from 2002 to 2020), and fixed effects regression models were employed to estimate the impact of multidimensional distance on China’s agricultural exports. Results found that the institutional, geographical, and cultural distance negatively impacted China’s agricultural exports significantly. The economic distance significantly promoted exports due to the demand and complementarity of trade between countries. After the technological added value is considered, the cultural distance significantly promoted the export of high-tech agricultural products. It is confirmed that the institutional distance remained the greatest obstacle to agricultural exports, and economic distance promoted agricultural exports. It is imperative to focus on promoting mutual cultural understanding and communication of institutional policies to stimulate agricultural exports and improve the exports of agricultural products of high technological content.