To cite this article:Liming Ge , Heyun Zheng , Pengbo Sun , Yongwei Ye & Zixuan Liu (02 Mar 2026): How does urban low-carbon governance shape carbon emissions? Evidence from China,Applied Economics, DOI: 10.1080/00036846.2026.2639090

ABSTRACT：Establishing low-carbon cities is a crucial strategy for reducing emissions, essential to tackling global climate change, reducing emissions, and achieving green development. This paper evaluates the impact of low-carbon city pilot (LCCP) policy on carbon emissions employing the difference-in-differences method. Our findings show that LCCP policy can significantly reduce carbon emissions. LCCP policy reduces carbon emissions by strengthening government environmental governance, promoting green innovation in enterprises, and raising public low-carbon awareness, with green innovation being the main channel. The carbon reduction effect of LCCP policy is more pronounced in southern regions, cities with high manufacturing concentration, green invention patents, and patents related to digital economy industries. Phased implementation of LCCP policy reduces carbon emissions, demonstrating its promotional effect. Our findings underscore that LCCP policy has long-lasting benefits for emission reduction, offering the important policy guidance for reaching carbon neutrality and fostering the green economy transformation.