Abstract:    The status in global value chains (GVCs) is an important manifestation of a firm′s ability to participate in international circulation. With the intensification of the anti-globalization trend in recent years, there have been localized block in the international circulation. How to effectively enhance firms′ status in GVCs has become an important issue that urgently needs to be solved. Based on the quasinatural experiment of "China′s Intellectual Property Pilot Cities" from 2000 to 2013, this paper adopted the DID model and empirically investigated the impact of cities construction for intellectual property (CCIP) on the status in firms′ GVCs and its mechanism. It was found that: (1) the CCIP is helpful to the upgrading of located firms′ status in GVCs; (2) creating an environment of innovation, attracting foreign direct investment, and introducing advanced production equipment are the key mechanisms; and (3) there is significant heterogeneity in the policy effects, with a greater impact on general trade firms, intellectual property intensive firms, and foreignfunded firms. Our findings will have implications for the implementation of the Intellectual Property Power Strategy, and upgrading firms′ GVCs status through the CCIP.

Key words:  pilot city for intellectual property, status in GVCs, domestic value-added ratio in exports