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Impact of digital trade on tourism carbon emission reduction in China under industrial agglomeration and low carbon pilot policies
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  • Published: 14 February 2026

Impact of digital trade on tourism carbon emission reduction in China under industrial agglomeration and low carbon pilot policies

  • Zhengyong Yu1,
  • Xiongtian Shi1,
  • Wei Liu2 &
  • …
  • Xiaoxuan Wu3,4 

Scientific Reports , Article number:  (2026) Cite this article

We are providing an unedited version of this manuscript to give early access to its findings. Before final publication, the manuscript will undergo further editing. Please note there may be errors present which affect the content, and all legal disclaimers apply.

Subjects

  • Business and management
  • Economics
  • Environmental social sciences

Abstract

The tourism sector, being a major contributor to worldwide carbon emissions, is pivotal in the shift towards a low-carbon economy. This research utilizes systematic GMM models alongside mediation analysis to investigate the mechanisms by which digital trade (DT) influences tourism carbon emissions efficiency (TCEE). The results showed that an increase in digital trade activities leads to a significant reduction in tourism carbon emission inefficiency (ITCE), which indicates an improvement in tourism carbon emission efficiency. This negative relationship between DT and ITCE (indicating a positive effect on TCEE) is especially evident in the eastern regions. The DT affects tourism services on both the production and consumption sides, with diverse implications for TCEE. Additionally, the effects of DT on TCEE are notably moderated by factors such as industrial agglomeration and specific low-carbon pilot policies. The concentration of high-tech industries and the agglomeration of producer services amplify the adverse effects of DT and TCEE. Conversely, implementing low-carbon pilot policies enhances the potential benefits of DT and contributes to further reductions in carbon emissions. The enhancement of digital infrastructure and technological innovations in DT is all conducive to reducing TCEE. These findings offer several policy recommendations for managers seeking to promote green tourism development and the sustainable development of low-carbon industrial economies.

Data availability

The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the Corresponding authors on request.

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Funding

This work was supported by the Youth Project of the Humanities and Social Sciences Fund of the Ministry of Education (22YJC790039), Scientific Research Fund Project of the Yunnan Provincial Department of Education (2024Y077, 2023Y0363), Key Project of Research Innovation for Graduate Students at Yunnan University (KC-23235237), Project of the Key Research Base for Humanities and Social Sciences on Resource-based Urban Development in Sichuan Province (ZYZX-YB-2402).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Business and Tourism Management, Yunnan University, Kunming, 650500, China

    Zhengyong Yu & Xiongtian Shi

  2. School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China

    Wei Liu

  3. School of Earth Resources, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China

    Xiaoxuan Wu

  4. Institute of Mineral Resources, Chinese Academy of Geological Science, Beijing, 100037, China

    Xiaoxuan Wu

Authors
  1. Zhengyong Yu
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  2. Xiongtian Shi
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  3. Wei Liu
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  4. Xiaoxuan Wu
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Contributions

Zhengyong Yu: Conceptualization, Data curation, Methodology, Formal analysis, Writing-original draft, Funding acquisition. Xiongtian Shi: Conceptualization, Formal analysis, Writing- review & editing. Wei Liu:Conceptualization, Methodology, Formal analysis, Validation, Visualization, Supervision, Writing—review & editing. Xiaoxuan Wu: Conceptualization, Formal analysis, Supervision, Validation, Writing- review & editing.

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Correspondence to Wei Liu.

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Yu, Z., Shi, X., Liu, W. et al. Impact of digital trade on tourism carbon emission reduction in China under industrial agglomeration and low carbon pilot policies. Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-39510-7

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  • Received: 17 August 2025

  • Accepted: 05 February 2026

  • Published: 14 February 2026

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-39510-7

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Keywords

  • Tourism carbon emission efficiency
  • Digital trade
  • Mediation effect
  • Moderating effect
  • Industrial agglomeration
  • Lowcarbon pilot policy
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