How Does Industrial Upgrading Affect Urban Ecological Efficiency? New Evidence from China

The upgrade of industrial structure is one type of momentum for improving urban ecological efficiency, and exploring the nexus between them can help implement the concept of green development. Using data from 284 cities in China between 2004 and 2019, this research employs a series of econometric models to examine how improving industrial structure contributes to the growth of urban ecological efficiency. The research results reveal that urban ecological efficiency can be significantly improved by industrial structure upgrade, while ecological efficiency is inhibited by low-quality GDP and financial development models and insignificantly decreased by industrial structure rationalization. In addition, industrial structure upgrading has failed to play a mediating role in promoting eco-efficiency through technological innovation and the reduction of pollutant emission intensity. Moreover, officials' turnover plays a negative moderating influence on the role of industrial upgrading in increasing ecological efficiency, while environmental regulation plays the opposite role. This study further conducts triple heterogeneity tests including city size, resource endowment, and regional heterogeneity, which provide a feasible way for further implementation of relevant policies.