Rural e-commerce and agricultural total factor productivity: Evidence from China

Employing the Comprehensive Demonstration ofE-commerce inRural Areas (CDERA) policy asaquasi-natural experiment, this paper explores the impact ofrural e-commerce development onagricultural total factor productivity (ATFP) and its underlying mechanisms, using adifference-in-differences model. The analysis utilises panel data from 1495 counties in China from 2001 to 2021. The findings indicate that the CDERA policy implementation enhanced ATFP in treated counties by approximately 1.6 percentage points compared to control counties, other factors being equal. Mechanism analysis further reveals that the CDERA policy enhances ATFP by improving agricultural technological efficiency and fostering agricultural industrial development. This study highlights the significant role of CDERA policy in enhancing agricultural productivity in China and offers policy insights for advancing rural e-commerce and promoting sustainable agricultural development.