Research On The Impact Of Digital Inclusive Finance On The Income Gap Between Urban And Rural Residents From A Spatial Perspective

Development of digital financial services has effectively reduced the cost of financial services and,to a certain extent,promoted China’s economic development.Meanwhile,the uneven distribution of financial resources due to the dual structure of urban and rural areas has restricted the integrated development of urban and rural areas in China,which is not conducive to the achievement of the goal of common prosperity in China.As an important gateway between the northwest and the outside world,the Shaanxi-Ganjiang-Ningxia region is of great significance to the achievement of China’s goal of common prosperity.However,for a long time,the Shaanxi-Ganxia-Ningxia region,especially the vast rural areas,has suffered from serious financial exclusion due to its location,and the income gap between urban and rural residents has remained high.Development of digital inclusive finance has effectively compensated for the shortcomings of traditional finance in Shaanxi,Gansu and Ningxia,and narrowed the income gap between urban and rural residents.Based on 145 county-level data from 2014-2020 in Shaanxi,Gansu and Ningxia,this article uses the spatial Durbin model to study the impact of digital inclusive finance on the income gap between urban and rural residents at the county level in Shaanxi,Gansu and Ningxia,and finds that:(1)digital inclusive finance can effectively reduce the income gap between urban and rural residents.(2)Development of digital inclusive finance in the region has an obvious spatial spillover effect,and its negative impact on the income gap between urban and rural residents in the surrounding areas is more obvious than the impact of digital inclusive finance on the income gap between local urban and rural residents.(3)Sub-dimensions of digital inclusive finance also have an impact on the income disparity between urban and rural residents.The breadth of coverage has a certain convergence effect on the income disparity between urban and rural residents,while the depth of use and the degree of digitalization do not have a significant negative impact on the income disparity between urban and rural residents,but all three have significant spatial spillover effects.(4)In terms of regional heterogeneity,development of digital inclusive finance in Shaanxi and Ningxia will significantly suppress the widening of the income gap between local urban and rural residents,while Gansu does not have a significant negative effect,but the development of digital inclusive finance at the county level in Shaanxi,Gansu and Ningxia has a significant spatial spillover effect.Finally,as a result of the above analysis,this article puts forward corresponding suggestions from three aspects: the top-level design of digital inclusive finance,regional economic linkages and the construction of county digital economies,in order to achieve effective convergence of digital inclusive finance on the income gap between urban and rural residents and to realize the balanced economic development of the Shanxi-Ganjiang-Ningxia region.