Research on the Sustainable Improvement of Regional Economic Resilience Based on High-Tech Industrial Agglomeration: Effects and Mechanisms

With notable spatial agglomeration characteristics, high-tech industries are closely associated with improvements in regional economic resilience. Using panel data for 31 provincial-level regions in mainland China over 2000–2022, this paper empirically investigates the correlation between high-tech industrial agglomeration and regional economic resilience, as well as its underlying mechanisms. The findings suggest that: (1) an inverted U-shaped association exists between high-tech industrial agglomeration and regional economic resilience, where moderate agglomeration tends to be linked with higher resilience whereas excessive agglomeration may correlate with weaker resilience; (2) high-tech industrial agglomeration may be related to improved resilience through potential channels of regional innovation capacity enhancement and industrial structure upgrading; (3) high-tech industrial agglomeration presents an inverted U-shaped spatial spillover correlation with neighboring regions, which appears more pronounced than its local direct association; (4) regional heterogeneity is observed: indirect associations prevail in eastern China, local direct associations dominate in central China, while western China exhibits both patterns; (5) human capital may serve as a critical threshold factor conditioning such correlations. Against the backdrop of intensifying global economic uncertainty, this paper reveals the potential role of high-tech industrial agglomeration in supporting regional economic resilience. It provides theoretical references for accurately grasping the optimal agglomeration scale of high-tech industries and promoting coordinated regional economic development, as well as tentative policy insights for achieving steady economic growth.