The 2024 Government Work Report of China explicitly emphasizes the need to "vigorously promote the construction of a modern industrial system and accelerate the development of new quality productivity (NQP)," underscoring the critical importance of NQP in the current era. This paper assesses the development of the provincial digital economy across four dimensions: digital infrastructure, digital industrialisation, industrial digitalisation, and digital governance. Simultaneously, the development of provincial NQP is measured through three dimensions: technological innovation, industrial innovation, and factor innovation. Using the Kernel density estimation method, this study analyzes the dynamic evolution of NQP development in China from multiple perspectives. Additionally, a double fixed-effects model is employed to empirically examine the role of the digital economy in empowering NQP, and a random forest approach is applied to investigate the "non-linear spillover effect" of the digital economy on NQP development. The findings of this study are as follows: (ⅰ) The digital economy significantly advances NQP, primarily by promoting technological innovation, optimizing employment structures, and enhancing factor synergy, with digital industrialization being a key driver of this progress. (ⅱ) The digital economy exhibits a non-linear spillover effect on NQP development.

This paper investigates the multifaceted mechanisms through which Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors influence corporate value. ESG performance, reflecting a company's adherence to sustainable practices, has become increasingly significant in contemporary business strategy due to its potential impact on firm profitability and market perception. While ESG initiatives are known to enhance corporate transparency and stakeholder trust, contributing positively to a company’s reputation and operational efficiencies, they also present financial challenges by potentially elevating operational costs and impacting short-term financial performance. Utilizing a comprehensive review of existing literature and theoretical frameworks such as stakeholder theory, agency theory, and signaling theory, this study delineates the balance firms must achieve between fostering long-term strategic advantages and managing immediate financial implications. By analyzing empirical evidence and case studies across diverse industries, the paper elucidates how robust ESG practices can attract better investment, improve risk management, and secure sustained economic benefits. This research contributes to academic discussions on ESG’s role in corporate value creation and offers practical insights for companies aiming to integrate these practices into their core strategies effectively. The findings highlight the importance of strategic ESG implementation and the necessity for firms to align these initiatives with broader corporate objectives to optimize both societal impact and shareholder value.

The current fruit cold chain in China faces problems such as low coverage of cold chain services, high turnover losses, and waste of resources. It has been found that novel temperature control technologies using phase change materials (PCM) can be applied to fruit cold chains but have not yet been widely adopted. This study attempts to predict the effectiveness of PCM in the two main stages of cold chain storage and transport based on real case scenarios. By assessing the economic, environmental, and social benefits achieved, this study examines whether PCM has practical value in optimizing the fruit cold chain for sustainable development. In this more detailed version, the study delves into the application of PCM technology in the fruit cold chain and its economic, environmental and social impacts. It presents additional case studies and theoretical discussions to provide more in-depth thinking and guidance for the sustainable development of the cold chain industry.

Under the complex and ever-changing global economic situation, the sales of new energy vehicles in China are facing many development opportunities and practical challenges. Market demand and policy environment impact the development of China's new energy vehicle industry. This research takes the new energy vehicle industry in China as the research object, adopts a combination of literature review and case analysis methods by combing and analyzing relevant literature, combined with practical cases, deeply discusses the development status and problems of China's new energy vehicle industry, and proposes improvement suggestions from two dimensions: market demand and policy environment. Research shows that insufficient market demand, insufficient technological innovation, and an unstable policy environment are the main factors that restrict industrial development. To solve these problems, measures need to be taken, such as increasing government support, enhancing technological innovation capabilities, and promoting reforms and innovations in marketing and other aspects, aiming to inspire China's new energy vehicle industry to go global.

As the streaming competition has intensified in recent years, Netflix has maintained its highest subscriber base since its inception, and research has shown that Netflix's success has had a significant impact on investors making the right investment decisions. This paper examines why Netflix, a streaming platform, outperforms its competitors. Choose Comcast; the other four most prominent companies in the entertainment industry, Walt Disney, Paramount Global, and WBD, perform a comparative analysis of financial data on liquidity, solvency, and profitability. The conclusion is that Netflix has plenty of liquidity, significant even available funds, robust debt management, and excellent profitability. Based on valuation analysis, it can be seen that Netflix has managed both its β_A and financial performance well and has a range of operational strategies. However, considering the unknown market changes (such as stronger competitors and a possible slowdown in its user growth), its stock price is considered to be overvalued when taking all factors into account.

The monetary policies of China and the US have differed due to their differing economic circumstances and stages of growth, which has had a significant impact on the RMB exchange rate's trend. This paper uses empirical analysis to examine the three channels—market expectations, China's foreign trade, and international capital flows—through which the monetary policy divergence between the two countries influences the RMB exchange rate. It also provides a detailed introduction to the historical development and current state of the policy divergence between the two countries.The findings demonstrate how market expectations are impacted by China and the US's divergent monetary policies, which first alter the US dollar index and interest rate disparity before influencing the direction of the RMB exchange rate. Finally, relevant suggestions are put forward on how to keep the RMB stable while addressing the strain on China's monetary policy brought on by the US and China's divergent monetary policies.

Under the background of "museum fever" starting from intellectual property anthropomorphism (IP anthropomorphism), this paper introduces the variable of intellectual property identity (IP identity), constructs the functional path model of consumers' purchase of "ugly cute" cultural and creative products, and analyzes the data by using questionnaires and mathematical models to explore how IP anthropomorphism affects consumers' purchase intention and analyze the mediating function that IP identity carries out between IP anthropomorphism and consumers' purchase intention in the process. This study shows that both IP anthropomorphism and IP identity have a direct positive influence on consumers' purchase intention, and IP identity does play a mediating role in the influence of IP anthropomorphism on consumers' purchase intention. Based on the results of the study, this paper proposes creative suggestions about IP design to the design department in the museum in order to help the museum increase sales of cultural and creative products and make its products meet the different needs of consumers at the same time.

The implementation of the Paid Sick Leave (PSL) Mandate in several cities and states since 2006 has enhanced workers’ health and productivity. This research paper evaluates the impact of PSL mandates on the weekly working hours of full-time workers in California State, using the traditional Difference-in-Difference model and Current Population Survey (CPS) data. It is found by the analysis that a notable rise in full-time employees’ working hours in California was experienced after the publication of PSL in 2015, contrasting with the steadily decreasing patterns in Texas. The positive impacts are confirmed by regression models. The findings depict that the PSL mandate may reduce full-time employees’ working hours at first glance, but its positive externalities could offset that negative impact. This study contributes a unique insight into the influence on a certain sort of workers – those working full-time, instead of the labor force as a whole, and provides valuable suggestions to policymakers, employers, and workers considering the policy in a full picture.

This study focuses on the importance of the relationship between carbon and oil in the context of global climate change and energy transition. In particular, this paper explores the link between fluctuations in the price of Brent crude oil in the United Kingdom and changes in the European Union Emission Allowances (EUA), which has significant implications for insight into energy market dynamics and policy making. This study uses an autoregressive (VAR) model to analyze the dynamic relationship between the European Union Emission allowances (EUA) market and the oil market from 2018 to 2024. Through Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF) stability test, the VAR model is established, the optimal lag order is determined, and the impulse response and Variance decomposition are analyzed. The results show that the EUA market has a short-term positive impact on the response of the oil market. But this effect has diminished over time, indicating the market's ability to self-regulate and stabilize. These findings provide new perspectives for understanding the interaction between global energy markets and environmental policy tools. The findings highlight the importance of considering these market dynamics when developing market strategies and environmental policies.

Africa and China have always been a community of destiny, with close ties and similar historical backgrounds. However, investigating whether the Chinese investment benefits the sustainable economic growth for Africa is valid. The gist of this essay is to look at the impacts of the Chinese investment on Africa’s economic growth. Through analysing the structure of Chinese investment, the constraints to Africa’s growth, the impacts caused by Chinese investment, and their effectiveness of them. The Solow Model is an exogenous doctorial model that is recognized by the public and also focuses on long-term economic growth. The essay will apply the Solow Model to realistic situations and use it to prove the effects that Chinese investment brought by using derivatives such as capital, investment, labor force, technology, and output. The properties of the Solow Model will also be involved. The research result is that Chinese investment has indeed helped Africa’s sustainable economic growth and it also fits the properties of the Solow Model. Meanwhile, there are some constraints and lack of effectiveness along with the benefits. So the essay concludes that even though the Chinese investment benefited the long-run economic growth of Africa, the African governments still need to increase their interventions in the market such as introducing policies that can control the dependency on Chinese leadership. And it is also important for Africa to maintain the ability to think independently and have its agendas.