Can government data openness enhance firms’ supply chain resilience? Evidence from the launch of open data platforms in China

In the face of growing economic and geopolitical uncertainties, supply chain resilience has become vital for firms’ sustainable growth. This paper examines whether government data openness enhances corporate supply chain resilience by exploiting the staggered launch of municipal open data platforms in China as a quasi-natural experiment. Using panel data on A-share listed firms from 2010 to 2023 and a difference-in-differences design, we find that data openness significantly improves firms’ supply chain resilience. The effect remains robust across a range of empirical tests. Mechanism analyses show that the policy operates by enhancing technological innovation, reducing supply – demand coordination costs, and facilitating digital transformation. These channels improve firms’ adaptability and resource efficiency in dynamic environments. Heterogeneity analyses reveal stronger effects among non-state-owned, technology-intensive, capital-intensive, and large firms. Moreover, the higher the quality of open data, and the more advanced the platform infrastructure and institutional support, the greater the improvement in firms’ supply chain resilience. By conceptualizing open data as an institutional supply of data factors, this study sheds light on how public data governance can strengthen firm resilience. The findings offer new perspectives on the economic value of data openness and provide practical implications for digital governance and industrial policy.