Existing literature continues to present divergent perspectives regarding how e-commerce development influences CO2 emissions. The China's county-level e-commerce pilot program provides new evidence for researches in this subject. This study investigates the effects of China's rural e-commerce development on CO2 emissions using panel data in 2142 counties from 2010 to 2021, as well as a staggered Difference-in-Differences (DiD) model based on the "Rural E-commerce Demonstration Counties " (REDC) pilot program. Considering the REDC preference towards poor areas, this paper adds the selection variable of pilot program into the model. The main purpose of the REDC is to foster e-commerce growth, but this study finds that the pilot program inadvertently significantly reduces county-level CO2 emissions while promoting GDP growth in the county. The pilot program of e-commerce mainly achieves carbon reduction through two channels: encouraging the servitization of county industrial structures and the digital transformation of traditional industries. Emissions reductions have a greater impact on economically developed places, provinces with a stronger basis in e-commerce, and counties with better mobility options. This study accurately assesses the impact of e-commerce expansion on reducing emissions, providing new idea for digital carbon emissions reduction and offers policy implications for sustainable economic development in many developing countries (regions).
Keywords: CO(2) emissions; Rural E-commerce demonstration counties pilot program (REDC); Staggered DiD model.
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