The Impact of Digital Economy on TFP of Industries: Empirical Analysis Based on the Extension of Schumpeterian Model to Complex Economic Systems

The digital economy (DE) is a new driver for enhancing total factor productivity (TFP). Using panel data from 30 provinces in China between 2011 and 2022, this study measures DE and TFP using the entropy-weighted TOPSIS method and the Global Malmquist–Luenberger method and further examines the impact of DE on the TFP of industries. The main findings are as follows: (1) DE can significantly improve TFP, though the extent of improvement varies. DE has the greatest impact on the TFP of the service industry, followed by the manufacturing industry, with the weakest effect on the agricultural industry. (2) The enhancement effect of DE on agriculture and the service industry is more pronounced in the central and western regions, while the improvement effect on manufacturing is more evident in the eastern region. (3) DE has facilitated the improvement of TFP in manufacturing industries such as textiles and special equipment manufacturing, as well as in service industries like wholesale and retail. However, it has not had a significant impact on the TFP of industries such as pharmaceutical manufacturing and real estate. This study has significant theoretical value and policy implications for China and other developing countries in exploring DE and achieving high-quality industrial development.