The Impact of the Imbalance in China’s Digital Economy on Carbon Emissions

The imbalance in China’s digital economy is undeniable, making its analysis and impact on carbon emissions highly significant. Using unbalanced panel data from 256 prefecture-level cities in China between 2011 and 2019, this study measures the Gini coefficient of digital economy development in China. It explores the effects and transmission mechanisms of this imbalance on carbon emissions. The empirical results show that: (1) The imbalance in the digital economy has a significant positive impact on carbon dioxide emissions. (2) Mechanism regressions reveal that the imbalance negatively affects regional industrial structures and significantly hinders improvements in green total productivity. Based on these findings, the study proposes policy recommendations to promote the balanced.