From Regional Competition to Coordinated Development: Promoting Core Technology Innovation in Key Fields by Building a Unified National Market

Abstract

The incentive mechanism of competition for growth often produces locally oriented innovation policies, creating asymmetric competition with countries that pursue strategically coordinated innovation. As a result, innovation in core technologies in key fields within China’s manufacturing sector remains confined to low-end segments and struggles to achieve breakthroughs. This study takes the development of a unified national market—aimed at optimizing resource allocation and mitigating regional market segmentation—as its starting point, and constructs a Footloose Entrepreneur model that incorporates the criticality of technology. Our theoretical derivation and numerical simulations yield two conclusions. First, the development of a unified national market can effectively promote regional innovation in core technologies in key fields. Second, this effort requires sound government guidance. Otherwise, non-benign interregional market barriers may lead to the agglomeration of high-end factors, thereby impeding the spillover of innovation to surrounding regions.

Keywords

a unified national market / innovation in core technologies in key fields / regional coordinated development / regional market segmentation / regional competition

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Higher Education Press