Abstract: Taking the counties of the Lancang River Basin as the basic unit of the research and the GDP per capita as the measurement index, a combination of mathematical statistical analysis and exploratory spatial data analysis （ESDA） was used to study and analyze the temporal and spatial patterns of economic differences in the counties of the Lancang River Basin from 1998 to 2018, and at the same time the spatial heterogeneity of its influencing factors through geographically weighted regression was explored. The results showed that the absolute difference in the economic development of the counties in the Lancang River Basin had shown an expanding trend in the past two decades, the relative differences had fluctuated and declined, and the differences in regional economic levels had been obvious; the county economy of the Lancang River Basin had obvious spatial correlation, but the spatial correlation fluctuated with time, and the economic correlation was weak; the county economy had obvious spatial differentiation characteristics, and there were obvious characteristics of temporal and spatial evolution. The significant “low-low” agglomeration area was located in the southwest and northwestern part of the study area, and the “high-high” agglomeration area only included two counties of Dali City and Binchuan County. The dual pressure of society and nature restricted the economic development of the Lancang River Basin.

Key words: economic difference, spatial pattern, evolution, spatial regression, Lancang River Basin