The impact of rural digital economy development on farmers' common prosperity: evidence from income growth and consumption expansion and upgrading

In the context of the Digital Rural Strategy, investigating the relationship between the rural digital economy and farmers' income growth, as well as consumption expansion, holds substantial practical significance. Drawing on provincial-level panel data from China spanning 2013–2022, this paper employs the Double Machine Learning framework to rigorously assess the effects of the rural digital economy on farmers' income growth and consumption expansion. The empirical findings suggest that the rural digital economy significantly enhances farmers' income growth and consumption levels, with industrial structure upgrading exerting a significant moderating effect in this process. The heterogeneity analysis indicates that the enabling effect of the digital economy is more significant in regions with relatively low levels of digital economic development, as well as in areas situated northwest of the Hu Huanyong Line.