How International Trade Affects the Spatial Pattern of China’s Economic Activities?

Abstract

This paper has analyzed the impact of international trade mechanisms to spatial economic structure, panel data 2001-2016 China's 30 provinces, and factors which affect Chinese economic structure of empirical research on trade openness, and found that, on the whole, trade openness has no significant direct effect on China's economic spatial pattern, and indirectly promotes policy advantages to make economic activities more spatially agglomerate, and to make economic activities more dispersed by promoting transportation infrastructure. From the perspective of the East, Central and West regions, the trade openness directly promotes the agglomeration of the East and West regions. The regional policy advantage is the main mechanism affecting the regional economic agglomeration. The human capital mechanism and the transportation infrastructure mechanism in the eastern region respectively make dispersal and agglomeration; the transportation infrastructure in the central part makes the space more dispersed; the human capital mechanism and the transportation infrastructure mechanism in the western region respectively make the space agglomerate and decentralized. Local governments should strengthen regional cooperation and formulate differentiated trade policies to lead regional industries to drive regional innovation.