The Impact of Carbon Emission Trading Policy on Industrial Structure Adjustment: A Perspective of Sustainable Development

Abstract

To mitigate the effects of climate change, carbon emission trading policy (CET) has emerged as a crucial policy instrument for nations. As the largest developing country, China confronts the pressing need to steer industrial restructuring and foster sustainable economic growth. Utilizing provincial panel data from 2005 to 2020, this study constructs a difference-in-differences model to examine the influence of CET on industrial structure adjustment (ISA) and corroborates these findings with robustness tests. The analysis reveals that: (1) CET substantially facilitates industrial restructuring; (2) CET inherently motivates enterprises towards technological innovation, thus advancing regional industrial restructuring; and (3) the effects of CET on industrial structures exhibit marked regional variability.