Carbon Emissions Trading Policies, Green Low-Carbon Transition and Enterprise Performance

Carbon emissions trading policy is an important means to realize the dual-carbon goal, and accelerating the promotion of green and low-carbon transformation of the development mode is an important to realize the comprehensive performance improvement. Based on the data of manufacturing enterprises listed in China’s A-share companies, a multi-temporal double-difference model is used to investigate the impact of carbon emissions trading policy on enterprise performance and the mediating role mechanism of green low-carbon transformation. The results of the study show that: the implementation of carbon emissions trading policy effectively improves the comprehensive performance including the economic performance, social performance and environmental performance of enterprises; carbon emissions trading policy can force enterprises to make green low-carbon transformation and improve their performance, and the green low-carbon transformation plays mediating role in the relationship between the carbon emissions trading policy and the performance of enterprises; in the moderating effect of green innovation and digital transformation, the carbon emissions trading policy can affect the performance of enterprises. There is also some heterogeneity in the economic, social and environmental performance of enterprises with different enterprise sizes, ownership natures and enterprise pollution levels. The results of this study provide a reference for manufacturing enterprises to realize green and low-carbon transformation and improve enterprise performance.