The Policy Benefits and Mechanisms of Service Sector Liberalization on the Innovative Development of Beijing’s High-End Service Industry

Abstract

Based on panel data from Beijing, this study employs a combination of the difference-in-differences (DID) method and the synthetic control method (SCM) to construct a counterfactual analysis framework, empirically testing the policy benefits of service sector liberalization and its underlying mechanisms. The findings indicate: First, the policy dividend effect is significant, with the expansion of service sector openness positively enhancing the total factor productivity (TFP) and international patent grant density of Beijing’s high-end service sector. The policy effect exhibits a sustained cumulative characteristic, with the gap between the actual TFP value and the synthetic control value gradually widening over time; Second, the policy drives innovation through three mechanisms: technology spillovers, institutional coordination, and spatial restructuring; Third, digital infrastructure plays a significant moderating role, with its amplifying effect on policy efficacy gradually strengthening and its contribution rate steadily increasing over time; Fourth, regional heterogeneity is pronounced, with foreign-invested areas showing significantly higher increases in TFP than traditional service areas. Based on the above findings, this paper proposes a four-dimensional optimization path of “differentiated opening-up, digital infrastructure networking, dynamic policy iteration, and regional institutional coordination” to provide policy references for building an open innovation ecosystem.