Country Sustainable Development and Economic Growth: The International Evidence

52 Pages Posted: 17 Apr 2019 Last revised: 16 Feb 2020

See all articles by Jiazhen Wang

Jiazhen Wang

Zhejiang University - College of Economics

Jing Yu

The University of Sydney; Financial Research Network (FIRN)

Rui Zhong

The University of Western Australia - UWA Business School

Date Written: February 11, 2020

Abstract

This study documents a significant and positive impact of country-level ESG improvement on economic growth using a comprehensive sample across 109 countries. The economic benefits of country-level ESG improvement are robust after alleviating endogeneity concerns using instrumental variable regression, dynamic panel GMM approach and placebo tests. Further, according to the subsample analyses, we find that the positive influence of country-level ESG improvement on economic growth is more pronounced in countries with a stronger incentive to improve ESG performance, and more powerful CSR responsive and law enforcement. Our findings provide policy implications for promoting sustainable economic growth.

Keywords: Country-level ESG; Sustainable Growth; Economic Growth

JEL Classification: O11; O44; O47; Q01; Q56

Suggested Citation

Wang, Jiazhen and Yu, Jing and Zhong, Rui, Country Sustainable Development and Economic Growth: The International Evidence (February 11, 2020). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3350232 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3350232

Jiazhen Wang

Zhejiang University - College of Economics ( email )

Yuquan Campus 38 Zheda Road
Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310027
China

Jing Yu

The University of Sydney ( email )

University of Sydney
Sydney, NSW 2006
Australia

Financial Research Network (FIRN)

C/- University of Queensland Business School
St Lucia, 4071 Brisbane
Queensland
Australia

HOME PAGE: http://www.firn.org.au

Rui Zhong (Contact Author)

The University of Western Australia - UWA Business School ( email )

35 Stirling Highway
Crawley, Western Australia 6009
Australia

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