In the current context of China’s vigorous development of its high-speed rail (HSR) network to accelerate the realization of connectivity, which is the aim of the “Belt and Road” initiative, it is crucial to study how the specific opening of HSR enhances enterprise human capital investment efficiency. Using a multiple-time-point difference-in-differences (DID) regression model, we empirically study data from listed Chinese companies. An HSR opening can promote the efficiency of an enterprise’s human capital investment. We further explore the relationship between HSR and a company’s human capital investment, by considering the moderating effects of firm property rights and foreign shareholding. Our findings indicate that these factors can enhance the impact of HSR on the efficiency of firms’ investments in human capital. Finally, to ensure the reliability of our experimental findings, we employed a combination of propensity score matching and the DID methodology. The findings of this study offer empirical evidence that can inform enterprise management strategies and provide valuable insights for policymakers seeking to promote economic growth.

In the process of seeking sustainable development, enterprises have chosen international business strategy. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the degree of internationalization of Chinese listed firms and financial reporting quality, as well as whether audit committees can moderate the impact of enterprise internationalization on financial reporting quality. The empirical analysis results of Chinese listed manufacturing firms from 2014 to 2018 show that: the degree of corporate internationalization has a significant U-shaped relationship with earnings management. This new finding solves the problem that scholars have inconsistent views on the internationalization of enterprises and the quality of financial reporting. The study also found that audit committees with experience working in accounting firms can inhibit firm earnings management behavior in the early stage of internationalization; audit committees with experience working overseas can inhibit firm earnings management behavior in the later stage of internationalization; the higher the remuneration of audit committee experts, the more it can inhibit firm earnings management behavior in the early stage of internationalization. In the later stage of internationalization, the higher the remuneration of audit committee experts, it helps the earnings management behavior of firms. This provides new evidence on the functioning of the audit committee’s role; however, the independence of the audit committee and the proportion of financial experts do not have a significant effect on the inhibition of earnings management.

The central government of China has intensively guided regional integration and policy coordination towards the development of digital governance in the last ten years. The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay was one of the most important regions of China expected to accelerate regional development through policy coordination and establishment of digital infrastructures. This article adopted the method of content analysis to explore the policy transitions of digital governance in the Greater Bay including policy contents (in terms of policy objectives and instruments) and policy networks. Based on our empirical analysis, we found that top-down guidance from the central government did not necessarily generate regional coordination. Different governments of the same region could start policy coordination from shared policy objectives and policy instruments and establish innovative governance frameworks to achieve consensus. Therefore, regional coordination could be fulfilled.