Does China's new energy vehicle industry innovate efficiently? A three-stage dynamic network slacks-based measure approach

Innovation ability is vital to the new energy vehicle(NEV) industry in China. To bridge the previous studies' gaps, a dynamic network slacks-based measure(DNSBM) model, coupled with the three-stage innovation framework, is employed to evaluate the industrial innovation efficiency. Overall, dynamic efficiencies and the divisional efficiencies of the R&D, manufacturing, and marketing process are present, drawing on 17 listed companies' data from 2012 to 2019. Additionally, the Malmquist index measures industrial productivity and its decomposition, including the Frontier-shift and Catch-up effect. The firm-level efficiencies' analysis ends up following the types of enterprises and divisional performance. The findings reveal that the overall innovation efficiency was low, and marketing and manufacturing efficiency were higher than those of the R&D division. Then, the annual overall and divisional productivities were low, whereas the cumulative productivities were high. In the end, all enterprises' performance differentiated, and commercial-vehicle firms' efficiencies were higher than those of the passenger-vehicle firms except for the marketing division. Meanwhile, the state-owned companies' efficiencies were higher than those of private companies' except for the marketing process. The theoretical and practical implications are available for the policymakers, managers, and academic researchers from this study.

Automated summary

The study reveals that the overall innovation efficiency of the Chinese new energy vehicle industry is low, with marketing and manufacturing efficiency higher than R&D efficiency. Additionally, commercial-vehicle firms have higher efficiencies than passenger-vehicle firms, and state-owned companies' efficiencies are higher than private companies', except in the marketing process.