How Does the Digital Economy Affect Carbon Emission Efficiency? Evidence from Energy Consumption and Industrial Value Chain

China is confronted with the dual constraints of economic transformation and carbon emission reduction. As the digital economy is a key force in promoting economic transformation and optimizing industrial structure, it is crucial to analyze the digital economy's impact on carbon emission reduction from the perspective of energy consumption and industrial value chain implications. We selected data from 251 prefecture-level cities and above in China from 2011 to 2019 as research samples, measured the development level of the digital economy using the entropy value method, and constructed relevant regression models based on two-way fixed effects, intermediary analysis, and moderation analysis. The research reveals that: (1) The digital economy has a significant contribution to carbon emission efficiency, and there are significant regional heterogeneity and city size differences; (2) The digital economy can improve carbon emission efficiency by reducing energy consumption. (3) From a value chain perspective, industrial structure rationalization weakens the carbon emission efficiency improvement effect of the digital economy to a certain extent, whereas industrial structure upgrading obviously enhances the carbon efficiency improvement effect of the digital economy. The above findings enrich the research in the field of digital economy and environmental governance, contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms by which the digital economy affects the carbon emission efficiency, as well as provide policy implications for enhancing the use of the digital economy in the regional energy consumption and industrial value chain.

Automated summary

China is facing the challenges of economic transformation and carbon emission reduction, and the digital economy plays a crucial role in promoting this transition. This study examines the impact of the digital economy on carbon emission reduction through analyzing energy consumption and industrial value chains. The research shows that the digital economy significantly contributes to carbon emission efficiency, with regional and city size variations. It also finds that the digital economy improves carbon emission efficiency by reducing energy consumption and its effects are influenced by industrial structure rationalization and upgrading. These findings enhance understanding of the relationship between the digital economy and environmental governance, and provide policy implications for utilizing the digital economy in regional energy consumption and industrial value chains.