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on Efficiency and Productivity |
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Issue of 2007‒12‒08
eight papers chosen by |
| By: | Laia Castany (Faculty of Economics, University of Barcelona); Enrique Lopez-Bazo (Faculty of Economics, University of Barcelona); Rosina Moreno (Faculty of Economics, University of Barcelona) |
| Abstract: | Empirical evidence is compelling that large firms are more productive than small firms. The hypothesis in this paper is that the productivity differences between small and large firms are associated with two of the main determinants of a firm’s performance: the human and technological capital that firms incorporate. We suggest that the contribution of these factors in explaining the size of the productivity gap might not only be due to the fact that large firms make a more extensive use of them, but also because large firms obtain higher returns from their investment in human and technological capital. The evidence we obtain for a comprehensive sample of Spanish manufacturing firms (1990-2002) supports this hypothesis, which has important implications for the effectiveness of policies designed to improve productivity in SMEs by stimulating innovation and the use of more skilled workers. |
| Keywords: | total factor productivity; innovation; skilled labour; firm size. |
| JEL: | D24 J24 L25 |
| Date: | 2007–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ira:wpaper:200716&r=eff |
| By: | Selin Ozyurt |
| Abstract: | This paper presents a timely assessment of Chinese industrial productivity performances over the period 1952-2005. The total factor productivity (TFP) growth analysis is based on a Cobb-Douglas specification with aggregated annual data set. This study tackles some theoretical and methodological issues raised by critics of previous studies. First of all, the use of economic tools allows us to relax some restrictive hypothesis of the neoclassical growth framework such as competitive market behaviour, constant returns to scale production technology and Hicks neutral technological change. In addition, our TFP growth estimates are adjusted for business fluctuations. The paper also deals with the autocorrelation issue prevailing in most previous studies. Our major findings are: (i) In Chinese industry, between 1952 and 2005 capital accumulation has been the main engine of economic takeoff. (ii) During the post-reform period, TFP growth contributed significantly to economic growth. (iii) TFP gains have exhibited a sharply increasing pattern since the late 1980’s, along with the accelerated integration of China into the world economy. |
| Date: | 2007–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lam:wpaper:07-13&r=eff |
| By: | Stefanie Haller (Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI)) |
| Abstract: | We use comparable micro level panel data for 14 countries and a set of identically specified empirical models to investigate the relationship between exports and productivity. Our overall results are in line with the big picture that is by now familiar from the literature: Exporters are more productive than non-exporters when observed and unobserved heterogeneity are controlled for, and these exporter productivity premia tend to increase with the share of exports in total sales; there is strong evidence in favour of self-selection of more productive firms into export markets, but nearly no evidence in favour of the learning-by-exporting hypothesis. We document that the exporter premia differ considerably across countries in identically specified empirical models. In a meta-analysis of our results we find that countries that are more open and have more effective government report higher productivity premia. However, the level of development per se does not appear to be an explanation for the observed cross-country differences. |
| Keywords: | Exports, productivity, micro data, international comparison |
| JEL: | F14 D21 |
| Date: | 2007–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:esr:wpaper:wp220&r=eff |
| By: | The Interna tional Study Group on Exports and Productivity |
| Abstract: | The authors use comparable micro level panel data for 14 countries and a set of identically specified empirical models to investigate the relationship between exports and productivity. The overall results are in line with the big picture that is by now familiar from the literature: Exporters are more productive than non-exporters when observed and unobserved heterogeneity are controlled for, and these exporter productivity premia tend to increase with the share of exports in total sales; there is strong evidence in favour of self-selection of more productive firms into export markets, but nearly no evidence in favour of the learning-by-exporting hypothesis. The authors document that the exporter premia differ considerably across countries in identically specified empirical models. In a meta-analysis of their results the authors find that countries that are more open and have more effective government report higher productivity premia. However, the level of development per se does not appear to be an explanation for the observed cross-country differences. |
| Keywords: | E-Business,Labor Policies,Economic Theory & Research,Labor Markets,Education for Development (superceded) |
| Date: | 2007–11–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:4418&r=eff |
| By: | Coccia Mario (Ceris - Institute for Economic Research on Firms and Growth, Moncalieri (TO), Italy) |
| Abstract: | The purpose of this paper is a comparative analysis of economic and technological performances of different countries. Data from Eurostat are used. The methodology applies descriptive statistics, correlation, regression and cluster analyses. The main results are: the best economic performance (and higher productivity) has been achieved by USA, followed by Europe and Japan. Italy instead has economic problems that breed an average low rate of economic growth over time. In all Japan case study shows that to be technological leader is not sufficient to increase economic growth but it is also necessaries to have a stability in economic and financial system. |
| Keywords: | Comparative Study, Economic Growth, Productivity, Science Policy |
| JEL: | C00 E00 E60 H50 O38 O40 O57 |
| Date: | 2007–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:csc:cerisp:200702&r=eff |
| By: | Piacenza Massimiliano (Ceris - Institute for Economic Research on Firms and Growth, Moncalieri (TO), Italy); Turati Gilberto (University of Torino, Department of Economics and Finance "G. Prato", Torino, Italy); Vannoni Davide (University of Torino, Ceris-CNR and HERMES, Department of Economics and Finance "G. Prato", Torino, Italy) |
| Abstract: | In this paper we investigate the economic rationality of the bed downsizing process characterising the hospital industry worldwide in the last decades, providing new evidence on the factor substitutability in the production of hospital services. We consider a sample of Italian regional producers and – differently from other studies – estimate a general cost function model, namely the Generalised Composite, firstly introduced by Pulley & Braunstein (1992). Alternative cost function specifications (included Translog) are estimated jointly with their associated input cost-share equations. For all models we derive Allen, Morishima and Shadow elasticities of substitution between input pairs, obtaining a fairly consistent picture across all specifications and elasticity concepts. More precisely, our results suggest a very limited degree of substitutability between factors in the production of hospital services (in particular, between beds and medical staff). These findings, consistent with previous evidence in the literature, suggest that a restructuring policy of the hospital industry which is confined to limiting the number of beds could not be a viable strategy for controlling the increase in public health care expenditure. |
| Keywords: | Public health care expenditure, Hospital industry downsizing, Input substitutability |
| JEL: | D24 I18 L32 |
| Date: | 2007–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:csc:cerisp:200703&r=eff |
| By: | Ilmakunnas, Pekka; Nurmi, Satu |
| Abstract: | We examine the process of internationalisation of firms, contributing to the knowledge on the factors behind a successful entry and operation in the export markets using duration analysis. Rich longitudinal microlevel data on Finnish manufacturing plants allow an indepth analysis of the life cycle of exporting plants over a time span of up to 25 years. In the first part of the analysis, we focus on the factors that explain the duration of time until entering plants start to export. The second part of the study concentrates on the duration of time until exit from the export markets. Our special focus is on the effects of foreign ownership, human capital and industry spillovers on export market entry and exit. |
| Keywords: | exports; foreign ownership; productivity; human capital; duration analysis |
| JEL: | L25 F23 F14 |
| Date: | 2007–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:6060&r=eff |
| By: | Christophe Cahn (Corresponding author: Banque de France, DAMEP, 31 rue Croix des Petits Champs, 75049 Paris Cedex, France.); Arthur Saint-Guilhem (European Central Bank, Kaiserstrasse 29, 60311 Frankfurt am Main, Germany.) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we present international comparisons of potential output growth among several economies — Canada, the euro area, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States — for the period 1991-2004. The main estimates rely on a structural approach where output of the whole economy is described by a Cobb-Douglas function. This framework enables us to take temporal considerations into account, depending on the assumed volatility of potential output. Moreover, this study presents two original features, in other words, the construction of consistent and homogenous capital stock series, and long-run estimates including capital-deepening effects based on a stable capital/output ratio in value terms, whereas standard estimations assume a stable ratio in volume terms. Lastly, we use univariate methods as a benchmark. Even though the final estimates are obviously sensitive to each method and the assumptions made for each of them, this paper might help to understand why some economies remained below their potential growth rate during the recent period by identifying the sources of long-run potential. JEL Classification: C51, E32, O11, O47. |
| Keywords: | potential growth, production function, total factor productivity, age of equipments. |
| Date: | 2007–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ecb:ecbwps:20070828&r=eff |