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Arid Land Geography ›› 2026, Vol. 49 ›› Issue (10): 2194-2204.doi: 10.12118/j.issn.1000-6060.2025.764

• Regional Development • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Pathways of digital-real economy integration empowering green transformation of manufacturing industry in the Yellow River Basin

FU Jincun1(), CUI Zihan2, JIANG Lisha2()   

  1. 1 School of Business, North Minzu University, Yinchuan 750001, Ningxia, China
    2 School of Accounting, Lanzhou University of Finance and Economics, Lanzhou 730020, Gansu, China
  • Received:2025-11-25 Revised:2025-12-31 Online:2026-10-25 Published:2026-10-26
  • Contact: JIANG Lisha E-mail:2020054@nmu.edu.cn;jianglisha@lzufe.edu.cn

Abstract:

The digital-real economy integration is a critical driver for promoting the green transformation of the manufacturing industry and building a modern industrial system in the Yellow River Basin. Based on the balanced panel data of prefecture-level cities in the Yellow River Basin from 2011 to 2022, this study employs the non-radial SBM-ML index method to measure the degree of green transformation in the manufacturing industry. A coupling coordination model is constructed to assess the level of digital-real economy integration. Furthermore, to achieve a comprehensive understanding, this study leverages the fixed effects model, the mechanism testing framework, and the spatial Durbin model to examine the effects, functional mechanisms, and spatial attributes associated with the impact of digital-real economy integration on the green transformation of the manufacturing industry. The findings reveal that: (1) The digital-real economy integration significantly enhances the efficiency of the green transformation of the manufacturing industry in the Yellow River Basin. This conclusion remains robust after addressing endogeneity issues with instrumental variables and conducting various sensitivity tests. (2) Green technology innovation and production structure optimization are two key pathways through which digital-real economy integration empowers the green transformation of the manufacturing industry. (3) The empowering effect of digital-real economy integration exhibits heterogeneity, being more pronounced for non-state-owned manufacturing enterprises, heavily polluting manufacturing enterprises, and regions in the upper reaches of the basin. (4) Digital-real economy integration has a significant local driving effect on the green transformation of the manufacturing industry in the Yellow River Basin. Moreover, the green transformation of the manufacturing industry itself demonstrates a spatial siphon effect. These results provide practical insights for formulating differentiated industrial policies, establishing cross-regional collaborative governance mechanisms, and promoting the green and low-carbon transformation of the manufacturing industry in the Yellow River Basin.

Key words: green technology innovation, production structure optimization, digital-real economy integration, green transformation, Yellow River Basin