Abstract: Based on a multi-level modeling method, this paper makes use of the 2008-2017 bilateral six-quantile product trade data of the countries along the“Belt and Road”route to study the impact of cultural approximation on the bilateral trade of the countries along the“Belt and Road”route and the boundary effect between the “Belt and Road” initiative and the culture division of the importing countries. The findings show that because cultural approximation reduces the uncertainty of bilateral trade, the higher the degree of cultural approximation among the countries along the“Belt and Road”route, the greater the bilateral trade volume will be. The positive regional institutional environment created by the“Belt and Road”initiative will strengthen the promotion of cultural proximity to the bilateral trade of countries along the“Belt and Road”route; however, the cultural division of importing countries will weaken the promotion effect of cultural proximity on the bilateral trade of countries along the“Belt and Road”route. The research findings of this paper will help to understand the impact of cultural approximation on international trade and its boundary conditions, then providing effective policy recommendations for the continuous and in-depth implementation of the “Belt and Road”initiative from a cultural perspective.

Key words: cultural approximation, the"Belt and Road"initiative, cultural division, multi-level model, bilateral trade