How Regions React to Economic Crisis: Regional Economic Resilience in a Chinese Perspective

Abstract

The severity of the 2007–2008 global financial crisis and the spatial heterogeneity of its impact have accelerated the study of regional economic resilience. However, few have investigated whether pre-crisis determinants impact regional economic resilience. This study explores the factors influencing regional economic resilience across 284 Chinese cities from 2003 to 2019. We use data from the National Bureau of Statistics in China and apply a multilevel logistic regression model. The results indicate the magnitude of the province effects on regional performance during the financial crisis. The results show that regional economic resilience is significantly shaped by provincial trajectories and region size. Furthermore, economic agglomeration, manufacturing, education, infrastructure, and financial development make regions less susceptible to external shocks and more resilient to financial crises. The results provide supportive evidence for governments to adopt region-based policies and thereby improve their performance.