Enterprise Low-Carbon Behavior, Financial Performance and Economic Transformation——Data from Listed Companies in China

Abstract

The low-carbon development of enterprises is an important breakthrough in Chinese economic transformation and the optimization and upgrading of the industrial structure. Based on a sample of Chinese listed companies involved in the low-carbon industry from 2010 to 2018, this paper empirically analyzes the correlation between the low carbon behavior, economic transformation and financial performance of listed companies. The results show that a company’s carbon intensity and financial performance are negatively related, and this relation is more significant when the financial performance is measured using the ROA (return on asset) of listed companies. The level of economic transformation in places where enterprises are located can significantly strengthen the positive relationship between enterprise low-carbon behavior and financial performance, including in central and western areas, where positive relationships are strengthened, and areas with heavy polluting industries, where positive relationships are weakened. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen carbon emission supervision for non-heavy polluting industries and enterprises in the central and western regions.