Can innovative pilot city policies improve the allocation level of innovation factors? – Evidence from China

Improving the level of innovation factor allocation is an important route to achieve high-quality economic development in China and has received much attention from scholars. As a policy system to change the old and new dynamics of innovation, the impact of innovation pilot cities on the allocation of innovation factors is of great importance. Using a sample of 254 prefecture-level cities in China from 2006 to 2019, this paper empirically analyses the impact of innovative pilot city policies on the allocation of innovation factors and their paths of action using a multi-temporal double-difference model. The study finds that the innovative pilot city policy significantly improved the level of innovation factor allocation, and this result held true after considering a series of robustness tests and endogeneity tests. Mechanistic tests show that the innovation pilot city policy has an impact on the allocation of innovation factors through the factor mobility effect and the innovation environment effect. Heterogeneity test shows that the influence of innovation pilot city policies on innovation factor allocation is greater in cities with higher administrative levels and better geographical locations. The economic consequences show that the innovation pilot city policy can significantly promote high-quality regional economic development. This study provides useful lessons for giving full play to the innovation-driven policy's innovation factor allocation effect, thereby enhancing China's high-quality economic development.