Is green contagious? -Local peer effects of corporate green investment

IF 5.6 2区经济学 Q1 BUSINESS, FINANCE

International Review of Economics & Finance Pub Date : 2025-09-22 DOI:10.1016/j.iref.2025.104650

Xiang Luo, JingJing Xiao, Jianan Zhou

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Abstract

This study investigates the local peer effects of corporate green investment based on data from listed companies in China from 2010 to 2022. The results suggest that a firm’s green investment is sensitive to those of its headquartered neighboring firms. We further find that firms imitate local peers’ green investments for competitive and reputational reasons. Firms facing intense product market and external financing competition are more likely to emulate their peers to gain a competitive edge. Additionally, stronger reputational incentives drive firms to match the green investments of local firms. However, we do not observe evidence that agency problems drive the local peer effects. Further analyses reveal that imitation behavior in green investments gains positive feedback from stakeholders, reflected in higher revenues, more green institutional investment, and fewer environmental penalties, which ultimately enhance long-term firm value. Our study deepens stakeholders’ understanding of the drivers and benefits associated with corporate environmental governance.

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绿色会传染吗？-企业绿色投资的地方对等效应

本文基于2010 - 2022年中国上市公司的数据，研究了企业绿色投资的地方对等效应。结果表明，企业的绿色投资对其总部相邻企业的绿色投资敏感。我们进一步发现，由于竞争和声誉的原因，企业模仿当地同行的绿色投资。面对激烈的产品市场和外部融资竞争，企业更有可能模仿同行以获得竞争优势。此外，更强的声誉激励促使企业匹配当地企业的绿色投资。然而，我们没有观察到代理问题驱动本地同伴效应的证据。进一步分析表明，绿色投资中的模仿行为获得了利益相关者的积极反馈，反映在更高的收入、更多的绿色机构投资和更少的环境处罚上，最终提高了企业的长期价值。我们的研究加深了利益相关者对公司环境治理的驱动因素和利益的理解。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

International Review of Economics & Finance Multiple-

CiteScore

7.30

自引率

2.20%

发文量

253

期刊介绍： The International Review of Economics & Finance (IREF) is a scholarly journal devoted to the publication of high quality theoretical and empirical articles in all areas of international economics, macroeconomics and financial economics. Contributions that facilitate the communications between the real and the financial sectors of the economy are of particular interest.