Ran, Q.C.; Wang, X.; Wang, D., and Yan, H., 2023. Inbound tourism economy for coastal areas of China: Differences and influencing factors. Journal of Coastal Research, 39(4), 750–762. Charlotte (North Carolina), ISSN 0749-0208.

Inbound tourism revenue is an important indicator to measure the level of tourism development of a country or region. Studying the economic differences in inbound tourism in China's coastal areas and their influencing factors can play an important role in balancing the economic disparities in China's coastal areas. The standard deviation (S), coefficient of variation (CV), and Theil index were used to quantitatively analyze the inbound tourism revenues of the three major marine economic circles, including 11 provinces (regions or municipalities) in China's coastal areas from 2010 to 2019. The results showed that the indices of the S and CV were relatively large. This means that disparities in coastal areas were obvious. Using the generalized least squares (GLS) method and the difference-in-differences (DID) method, it is found that the level of economic development, the degree of opening up, the construction of tourism facilities, and major events are the main factors contributing to the differences in inbound tourism in coastal areas of China. Suggestions are made with respect to these main influencing factors, with a view to achieving sustainable development.