A study on the impact of trade openness on heterogeneous workers’ agglomeration: Empirical evidence from 285 prefecture-level cities in China
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F129.9;F241

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    Abstract:

    Since the reform and opening-up policies began, the workers agglomeration in China has shown an obvious core (east)-periphery (central and western) spatial distribution characteristics. With China going into the new era of comprehensive opening-up, the heterogeneous agglomeration of high-and low-skilled workers is increasingly apparent. At the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, it was proposed that "push forward further opening-up and implement the strategy of strengthening the country through talents". Major cities in China are striving to build new advantages in talent gathering, and heterogeneous labor agglomeration is bound to present a new situation. Under the theoretical framework of new economic geography, by using the population census data and sample survey data which are used to match the panel data of prefecture-level cities and micro-level data from "Urban Household Survey" in China, the authors investigate the impact of trade openness on heterogeneous workers' agglomeration and mechanism. 1) The benchmark regression results shows that the trade openness effectively promotes the agglomeration of high-and low-skilled workers, but has a greater impact on the former, which conclusion is still valid after a series of robustness tests. 2) The regression results of difference test between time and space shows that, from the perspective of different regions, the trade openness effectively promotes heterogeneous workers agglomeration is mainly in the eastern and southern; from the perspective of different periods, the trade openness after joining the WTO has increased the positive influence on heterogeneous workers agglomeration, while the influence on low-skilled workers' agglomeration has declined since 2010. 3) The impact mechanism test shows that, on the one hand, trade openness would attract high-and low-skilled workers gathering by boosting wages; On the other hand, by driving up the housing price, trade openness plays an "inverted U-shaped" influence on the agglomeration of high-and low-skilled workers, that is, when the housing price is high, the house prices becomes the centrifugal forces that trade openness affects heterogeneous labor agglomeration. 4) The expansion analysis shows that, a significant reason for the greater impact of trade openness on high-skilled workers' agglomeration is skill premium; Meanwhile, trade openness also could strengthen the driving role of high-skilled workers on the low-skilled workers' agglomeration through skills complementarity; Especially in big cities or third-tier and above cities, high-skilled workers are more likely to obtain the skill premium from trade openness, and the skill complementary effect of trade openness is more obvious. Therefore, it is necessary to continue further trade openness and enhance the agglomeration of innovation factors. And the trade openness of eastern and midwest cities should be focused on their own characteristics, so as to create a coordinated regional development pattern with reasonable openness gradient and complementary advantages. In addition, we should give full play to the skills premium and complementary effect of trade openness, activate the circular accumulation and agglomeration mechanism of heterogeneous workers, and create a reasonable and orderly spatial distribution of high-and low-skilled workers' co-agglomeration.

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欧晓静,李红.贸易开放对异质性劳动力集聚的影响研究——来自中国285个地级及以上城市的经验证据[J].重庆大学学报社会科学版,2023,(4):17~32

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  • Online: September 08,2023
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