The impact of cross-border e-commerce comprehensive pilot zone establishment on inter-firm wage disparities
跨境电商综试区设立对企业间工资差距的影响

摘要

本文以中国跨境电商综合试验区设立为准自然实验，基于2011–2024年A股上市公司数据，采用多期双重差分法（DID）系统评估了跨境电商综试区设立对企业间工资差距的影响及其作用机制。研究发现：第一，综试区政策显著提高了区内企业平均工资水平，扩大了综试区内外企业间的工资差距；第二，政策效果存在显著异质性，大规模企业、出口企业受益更明显；第三，机制检验表明，政策通过“融资约束缓解效应”和“人才结构升级效应”共同影响工资差距。本研究为理解跨境电商综试区设立与收入分配的关系提供了新的微观证据，并对优化综试区政策布局、促进区域协调发展和推动共同富裕目标下的高水平开放具有重要政策启示。

Abstract

This study utilizes the establishment of China’s Cross-Border E-Commerce Comprehensive Pilot Zones (CBEC CPZs) as a quasi-natural experiment to systematically evaluate the impact of CBEC CPZ policies on inter-firm wage disparities. Based on data from A-share listed companies spanning 2011–2024, we employ a multi-period difference-in-differences (DID) approach for empirical analysis. The findings reveal three key insights: First, the CBEC CPZ policy significantly raises the average wage level of firms within the pilot zones, thereby widening wage disparities between firms inside and outside these zones. Second, the policy effects exhibit significant heterogeneity, with large-scale firms and export-oriented enterprises benefiting more substantially. Third, mechanism tests indicate that the policy influences wage disparities through the combined effects of "financing constraint alleviation" and "talent structure upgrading." This study provides new micro-level evidence on the relationship between CBEC CPZ establishment and income distribution, offering important policy implications for optimizing the spatial distribution of CPZs, promoting regional coordinated development, and advancing high-level openness under the goal of common prosperity.