Recently, the paper Digital Technology Application and Export Performance of Enterprises - Taking Enterprises in Zhongguancun National Independent Innovation Demonstration Zone as An Example co-authored by Professor Cai Hongbo of BNUBS and Dr. Han Jinrong, an assistant researcher at the Institute of International Economics of the University of International Business and Economics, was published in the 5th issue of Management World in 2024. This paper studies the effect of digital technology application on export growth and export upgrading of enterprises, explores the mechanism of technology paradigm reshaping and employment skill structure optimization, and discusses the linkage effect of national innovation-oriented tax reduction policy.

Accelerating the digitalization of the whole chain of trade is an important part of building a new system of higher level open economy in China and a key force to promote the construction of a new development pattern of domestic and international double cycle. Looking back on the past, China's foreign trade shows strong resilience and vigorous vitality. At the same time, profound and complex changes have taken place in the foreign trade environment, as the world is undergoing major changes unseen in a century. At the current stage of new development, in order to promote the high-quality development of foreign trade, it is urgent to expand the new momentum of foreign trade, and it is of great practical significance to study the impact of digital technology application on export trade. The application of digital technology is an important measure to promote the digital transformation of trade entities and achieve high-quality development of foreign trade. Based on the data of enterprises in Zhongguancun National Independent Innovation Demonstration Zone from 2014 to 2019, this paper empirically studies the impact of digital technology application on enterprises' export performance. It is found that the application of digital technology significantly promotes the export growth and export upgrading of enterprises, which is reflected in the increase of export probability, total export volume, export volume of high-tech products and the proportion of high-tech products export. However, the impact of different digital technologies on the export of enterprises is heterogeneous. The digital technology at the underlying technical level is conducive to the export performance of high-tech products of enterprises, while the digital technology at the technology application level mainly contributes to the improvement of the export scale of enterprises.In addition, the application of digital technology has a greater role in the export growth and upgrading of private enterprises and large and medium-sized enterprises. The mechanism test shows that the application of digital technology promotes the export growth and upgrading of enterprises through the reconstruction of technology paradigm and the optimization of employment skill structure. Further discussion found that the national innovation-oriented tax reduction policy and the application of digital technology have a linkage effect on promoting enterprises' exports. This paper has certain policy reference value for better exerting the role of digital technology in expanding high-level opening to the outside world.

Cai Hongbo, Han Jin rong, Digital Technology Application and Export Performance of Enterprises - Taking Enterprises in Zhongguancun National Independent Innovation Demonstration Zone as An Example, published in the Management World in 2024 5, article links: http://www.mwm.net.cn/web/xq?leafId=226&docId=5363

About the author: Cai Hongbo, professor, doctoral supervisor, Director of Finance Department, Beijing Normal University, Professor, doctoral supervisor, Director of Free Trade Zone Research Center, BNUBS. Visiting scholar at Stanford University, Member of the Expert Advisory Committee of the 8th Tariff Commission of The State Council, Chief expert of major projects of National Social Science Fund. Chief Chinese expert of the EU Horizon Project. He has published more than 160 papers in Economic Research, Management World, World Economy, Chinese Industrial Economicsand Journal of World Business. He was awarded the Yasusuke International Trade Research Award.

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Edited by Sun Yue

Reviewed by Wei Hao