The Impact of Carbon Trading Policy on the Green Innovation Efficiency of Enterprises: Evidence from China

Improving green innovation efficiency (GIE) is crucial for reducing enterprise carbon emissions and fostering enterprise sustainability. Meanwhile. most of the research has not considered the micro-level influence of carbon trading on GIE. Therefore, the research objective of this paper is to assess the impact of carbon trading policy (CTP) on the GIE of enterprises and its specific mechanism. This paper uses data from China’s listed enterprises from 2010 to 2019 and treats the 2013 CTP in seven regions as a quasi-natural experiment. The Super-SBM model is applied to calculate the GIE. The difference-in-difference-in-differences (DDD) method assesses policy impact by comparing pre- and post-policy efficiencies. The results reveal that CTP improves the GIE of enterprises in high-carbon emission sectors in pilot areas. It primarily boosts GIE by increasing the environmental attention and resource allocation efficiency of enterprises. CTP significantly promotes the GIE of non-state-owned enterprises (non-SOEs), large-scale enterprises, and enterprises in regions with strict environmental regulations. Finally, policy recommendations are made for more environmentally friendly and sustainable enterprise development.