Impact of China Railway Express on Regional Resource Mismatch—Empirical Evidence from China

Abstract

Based on the perspective of regional resource mismatch, we explore the impact of the China Railway Express (CRE) opening by applying the difference-in-difference method (DID). The study found that the CRE has aggravated the degree of regional resource misallocation, and this conclusion was still valid after robustness tests. The heterogeneity analysis shows that the role of CRE in the western region and large-scale urban resource mismatch is more obvious. In terms of impact mechanism, the large subsidies and disorderly competition of local governments have a negative impact on the market-oriented normal operation of CRE, which is an important mechanism to aggravate the degree of regional resource mismatch. Therefore, in order to alleviate the policy impact of CRE on regional resource misallocation and improve the quality of the development of the CRE, the state, local governments, enterprises, and other forces should work together to establish a benign interaction between the government and the market.