制度创新促进利用外资“稳中提质”了吗

Does Institutional Innovation Promote the“Stability and Quality Improvement”of Foreign Capital Utilization

制度创新对利用外资具有“稳中提质”的作用是当前中国制度型开放的重要命题。在量化分析自贸试验区制度创新的基础上,本文基于自贸试验区片区所在城市的面板数据进行实证研究。结果发现:自贸试验区制度创新通过降低市场准入壁垒和制度性交易成本的直接作用机制,以及推动产业集聚、高端要素集聚和扩大本土市场需求规模的间接作用机制,促进地区利用外资“稳中提质”。基于空间计量的进一步研究发现,自贸试验区制度创新对相邻城市利用外资尚未产生“辐射”作用,反而具有“虹吸”作用。此外,从制度创新具体维度来看,以政府职能转变和法治化环境优化为表现的制度创新作用较为明显,而贸易投资自由化的效果还未体现出来。这一结果可能意味着,当前自贸试验区形成的“可复制、可推广”制度创新成果“落地”效果欠佳,在区域联动和产业协作等方面还未形成有效分工。未来,自贸试验区制度创新在继续进行差异探索的同时,亟待在上述几个方面取得新进展、新突破,从而进一步发挥其对利用外资“稳中提质”的积极作用。

The pivotal role of institutional innovation in fostering the“stability and quality improvement”of foreign capital utilization is an important proposition in the context of China's institutional opening-up.Employing an innovative approach to measure institutional innovation in the pilot free trade zone,our empirical research reveals that the institutional innovation in the pilot free trade zone exhibits a direct mechanism of reducing market access barriers and institutional transaction costs.Moreover,it exerts an indirect influence through mechanisms such as industrial agglomeration,high-end factor agglomeration,and the scale of local market demand,thereby promoting the“stability and quality improvement”of foreign capital utilization in the region.Further analysis,incorporating spatial metrology,indicates that the institutional innovation in the pilot free trade zone has not produced a“radiation”effect on the utilization of foreign capital in neighboring cities.Instead,it demonstrates a“siphon”effect.In addition,an examination of specific dimensions of institutional innovation indicates that the transformation of government functions and the optimization of the rule of law environment yield positive effects,while trade and investment liberalization does not.This result suggests that the“landing”effect of“replicable and scalable”institutional innovation may not be optimal,and an effective division of labor is yet to emerge in terms of regional linkage and industrial collaboration.In the future,while continuing to engage in differentiated exploration,the institutional innovation in the pilot free trade zone urgently requires progress and breakthroughs in the aforementioned aspects to further exert its positive impact on the“stability and quality improvement”of foreign capital utilization.