Will World Cultural Heritage Sites Boost Economic Growth? Evidence from Chinese Cities

Abstract

Cultural heritage is closely related to the economy. However, most studies focus on the relationship between the cultural heritage and tourism economy, instead of on the overall economy. This paper estimated the effect of the World Cultural Heritage(s) (WCH) acquisition on economic growth in 242 Chinese cities from 2004 to 2017, based on multiple variations of the difference-in-differences method. Our results show that the WCH acquisition can boost economic growth in local cities. In addition, research and development investments, appearance patents, and exports are three plausible channels for the WCH acquisition to spur cities’ economic growth. Connecting to high-speed rail is not necessary for a city to gather economic benefits from the WCH acquisition. Being a smart city can increase the economic enhancement capacity of the WCH acquisition.