Econ Papers Daily / 期刊论文
中国电动汽车补贴的归属与分配效应
The incidence and distributional effects of electric vehicle subsidies in China
摘要
This study investigates the pass-through and distributional effects of electric vehicle (EV) subsidies in China, offering insights for effective environmental policy design. Using a structural demand-supply model with detailed sales and survey data, we find that EV subsidies are more than fully passed through to consumers, yet disproportionately benefit high-income buyers. This regressive distribution undermines the subsidies’ effectiveness in promoting broader EV adoption. To address this, we propose an equitable alternative subsidy model that prioritizes innovation while being progressive—redistributing resources towards low-income households. Simulations demonstrate that, under the same budget, this scheme increases both consumer and producer surplus. Manufacturers pass on a larger share of the subsidy, and price-sensitive low-income buyers gain access to larger subsidies, expanding EV sales and yielding overall welfare gains through reduced market distortions. These findings underscore how subsidy design—particularly its distributional impact—is crucial to the success of clean vehicle policies in accelerating green technology adoption and mitigating environmental externalities, providing a blueprint for equitable, welfare-enhancing policies.
中文摘要
本研究考察中国电动汽车补贴的传导效应与分配效应，为有效的环境政策设计提供启示。基于包含详细销售与调查数据的结构性供需模型，我们发现电动汽车补贴对消费者的传导超过完全传导，却不成比例地惠及高收入购买者。这种累退性分配削弱了补贴在促进更广泛电动汽车采用方面的有效性。为应对这一问题，我们提出一种公平的替代补贴模式，该模式在优先支持创新的同时具有累进性——将资源向低收入家庭再分配。模拟表明，在相同预算下，该方案同时增加消费者剩余与生产者剩余。制造商传导更大比例的补贴，对价格敏感的低收入购买者获得更大额度补贴，从而扩大电动汽车销量，并通过减少市场扭曲带来整体福利增益。这些发现凸显了补贴设计——尤其是其分配效应——对于清洁车辆政策在加速绿色技术采用和缓解环境外部性方面取得成功至关重要，为公平且增进福利的政策提供了蓝图。