The Impact of Economic Openness on Capital Stock: An Empirical Analysis Based on Technological Innovation and Industrial Structure Optimization
Main Article Content
Keywords
economic openness, capital stock, technological innovation, industrial structure optimization
Abstract
Against the backdrop of the restructuring of economic globalization and the continuous advancement of high-level opening-up strategies, economic openness, as a key factor influencing regional capital accumulation, holds significant practical importance for promoting high-quality economic development. Based on provincial panel data from China for the period 1998–2019, this paper employs fixed effects models and panel instrumental variable methods to investigate the effect of economic openness on capital stock, its underlying mechanisms, and regional heterogeneity. The results show that economic openness significantly promotes the increase of capital stock. The mediation effect analysis indicates that economic openness promotes capital accumulation through two pathways: enhancing technological innovation capability and optimizing industrial structure. Heterogeneity analysis reveals that the promotional effect of economic openness on capital stock is more pronounced in the eastern and western regions. Based on these findings, the paper proposes policy recommendations including continuously advancing institutional opening-up, strengthening the mediating role of economic growth capacity between economic openness and capital stock, and implementing differentiated regional opening strategies.
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