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on Microeconomic European Issues |
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Issue of 2017‒06‒25
29 papers chosen by Giuseppe Marotta Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia |
| By: | Stöver, Britta |
| Abstract: | The German education system is organised in a federal system, i.e. each of the 16 Federal States is solely responsible for the supply and financing of the university places. Offering a sufficient number of these places is important in achieving the aim of promoting academic education and increasing the participation opportunities in higher education. An elaborate planning and monitoring is hence necessary, that equally considers external factors such as demographic change as well as individual changes such as the propensity to study and the preferred starting point of the studies. While the reasons for the decision in favour of studies are well documented, the reasons for a delayed start of the study were less subject to empirical investigation. Using panel regressions with fixed effects the transition from school to studies can be explained for different time lags. It can be shown that the influences on the transition behaviour are manifold and vary with the kind of the admittance qualification (for university or for university of applied sciences) and the length of the time lag. Fast transitions are mainly supported by a high relative number of above average exams, a high share of people in need of long-term care as well as a high number of granted student loans. Maintaining the school reform G8 with a shortened schooling time, wage raises broadening the financial scope for a year abroad or a voluntary social year as well as an increase in the rate of vocational training tend to delay the start of studies by one year. A growing risk of unemployment especially enhance a later transition by prolonging the entrance in the job market with the related job hunt. |
| Keywords: | University enrolment; transition rates with time lags; empirical analysis; panel regressions with fixed effects |
| JEL: | I21 I23 |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:han:dpaper:dp-596&r=eur |
| By: | François Cohen; Matthieu Glachant; Magnus Söderberg |
| Abstract: | This paper uses product-level data from the UK refrigerator market to evaluate the impact of electricity prices on product innovation. Our best estimate is that a 10% increase in the electricity price reduces the average energy consumption of commercialized refrigerator models by 2%. A large share of this reduction is explained by a reduction of freezing space. We also show that the exit of energy-inefficient products contributes more to energy reduction than the launch of new energy-efficient models. These findings suggest that innovation – the development of better technologies embodied in new products – does not respond strongly to energy price variations. |
| Keywords: | Induced Innovation; Energy Efficiency; Electricity Prices; Multiple Imputations; Product entry and exit. |
| JEL: | D12 L68 Q41 Q55 |
| Date: | 2017–06–13 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gii:ciesrp:cies_rp_51&r=eur |
| By: | Yekaterina Chzhen; Zlata Bruckauf; Emilia Toczydlowska; UNICEF Office of Research - Innocenti |
| Abstract: | The new universal Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) call for “reducing at least by half the proportion of men, women and children of all ages living in poverty in all its dimensions according to national definitions” by 2030. Since few European Union (EU) countries have an official national multidimensional poverty measure for monitoring progress towards the SDGs, this paper proposes and evaluates a child-specific multidimensional poverty measure using data from ad hoc material deprivation modules of the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) 2009 and 2014. The proposed measure can be used both for national and EU-wide SDG monitoring without replacing either national or EU-wide indices of material deprivation. Comparing child multidimensional poverty rates between 2009 and 2014, the paper ranks EU countries based on the 2014 headcount rates and changes over time. |
| Keywords: | adolescents; multiple deprivation; poverty; sustainable development; |
| Date: | 2017 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ucf:inwopa:inwopa894&r=eur |
| By: | Jon Kristian Pareliussen; Christophe André; Hugo Bourrousse; Vincent Koen |
| Abstract: | Sweden is an egalitarian society in international comparison, and has managed to combine equity with economic efficiency. Rapidly rising inequality and relative poverty from a historical low in the 1980s partly stem from ageing, changing family structures and migration. Living standards increased for all groups, but social benefits rose less than earned income. Incomes of newly-arrived immigrants and single mothers trailed the median. Bottlenecks in the migrant settlement process are costly to migrants and society, and high entry wages further slow integration. Spatial segregation leads to school segregation and potentially reduced social mobility for the least endowed, and rental regulations reduce the scope for settling where job opportunities are the best. Fast-growing capital incomes, likely linked to increasing wealth concentration and income shifting, increased inequality. Low intergenerational income mobility in the very top of the income distribution is a concern. Social benefits should be uprated more systematically and regressive housing-related taxation reformed to strengthen redistribution. Migrant settlement and integration need to be better coordinated and adapted to individual starting points. The number of wage subsidies and their administrative complexity should be reduced to ease labour market entry. Dysfunctional rental regulations should be reformed to increase mobility and limit spatial segregation. This working paper relates to the 2017 OECD Economic Survey of Sweden (www.oecd.org/eco/surveys/economic-surve y-sweden.htm). |
| Keywords: | housing, Income, inequality, migration, redistribution, rent control, skills, wealth |
| JEL: | D31 F22 H23 H55 |
| Date: | 2017–06–23 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:ecoaaa:1394-en&r=eur |
| By: | Marco Mariani (IRPET – Regional Institute for Economic Planning of Tuscany); Alessandra Mattei (Dipartimento di Statistica, Informatica, Applicazioni "G. Parenti", Università di Firenze); Lorenzo Storchi; Daniele Vignoli (Dipartimento di Statistica, Informatica, Applicazioni "G. Parenti", Università di Firenze) |
| Abstract: | Public support to start-ups often has the dual ambition of fostering self-employment of disadvantaged individuals while nurturing entrepreneurship. In this paper we evaluate a female and youth start-up program recently implemented in Tuscany (Italy), which provides public guarantees and subsidized interest rates to new firms. Under the assumption of strong ignorability of the assignment mechanism, we use a propensity score matching approach to draw inference on causal effects of the program on firms’ survival and job creation. Results suggest that public support in this area may have rather ambiguous effects. It helps females and young people escape unemployment or inactivity, and may lead to further job creation. Unfortunately, all this occurs at the price of committing public resources towards entrepreneurial projects that hardly gain efficiency over time. |
| Keywords: | entrepreneurship, self-employment, program evaluation |
| JEL: | J68 L26 R50 |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fir:econom:wp2017_04&r=eur |
| By: | Stockinger, Bastian (Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany]) |
| Abstract: | "This study investigates the effects of local broadband internet availability on establishment- level employment growth. The analysis uses data for Germany in the years 2005-2009, when broadband was introduced in rural regions of Western Germany and in large parts of Eastern Germany. Technical frictions in broadband rollout are exploited to obtain exogenous variation in local broadband availability. The results suggest that broadband expansion had a positive effect on employment growth in the Western German service sector and a negative effect in Western German manufacturing. This pattern of results is driven by pronounced positive effects in knowledge- and computer-intensive industries, suggesting that it is the actual use of broadband in the production process that leads to complementary hiring, respectively a slowdown of employment growth, in the respective sectors. For Eastern Germany, no significant employment growth effects are found." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en)) |
| JEL: | J63 O33 R23 |
| Date: | 2017–06–13 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iab:iabdpa:201719&r=eur |
| By: | Kyyrä, Tomi (VATT, Helsinki); Pesola, Hanna (VATT, Helsinki) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the long-term effects of extended unemployment benefits that older unemployed can collect until retirement in Finland. We consider a reform that increased the age threshold of this scheme from 55 to 57 for people born in 1950 or later. Our regression discontinuity estimates show that postponing eligibility by two years increased employment over the remaining working career by seven months. Despite the corresponding reduction in unemployment, we find no evidence of significant effects on mortality or receipt of disability and sickness benefits, nor on the spouse's labor supply. We also compute the fiscal impact of the reform taking into account income taxes and social security contributions paid and benefits received. The reform increased net income transfers by 15,000 Euros over the 10-year period for an average individual. |
| Keywords: | unemployment insurance, early retirement, layoffs |
| JEL: | J26 J63 J64 J65 |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp10839&r=eur |
| By: | CARPENTIER Jean-François; OLIVERA Javier; VAN KERM Philippe |
| Abstract: | Macroprudential policies, such as caps on loan-to-value (LTV) ratios, have become part of the policy paradigm in emerging markets and advanced countries alike. Given that housing is the most important asset in household portfolios, relaxing or tightening access to mortgages may affect the distribution of household wealth in the country. In a stylised model we show that the final level of wealth inequality depends on the size of the LTV ratio, housing prices, credit cost and the strength of a bequest motive; ultimately with no unequivocal effect of LTV ratios on wealth inequality. These trade-offs are illustrated with estimations of "Gini Recentered Influence Function" regressions on household survey data from 12 Eurozone countries that participated in the first wave of the Household Finance and Consumption Survey (HFCS). The results show that, among the households with active mortgages, high LTV ratios at the time of acquisition are related to high contributions to wealth inequality today, while house price increases are negatively related to inequality contributions. A proxy for the strength of bequest motives tends to be negatively related with wealth inequality, but credit cost does not show a significant link to the distribution of wealth. |
| Keywords: | Macroprudential policiy; Wealth distribution; Household finance; LTV ratio; Inequality |
| JEL: | D31 E50 G21 |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:irs:cepswp:2017-09&r=eur |
| By: | Povilas Lastauskas (Bank of Lithuania); Eirini Tatsi (Stockholm University, Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI)) |
| Abstract: | Space is important. In this paper we use the global financial crisis as an exogenous shock to the German labor market to elucidate the spatial nexus between crime and unemployment. Our contribution is twofold: first, we lay down a parsimonious spatial labor market model with search frictions, criminal opportunities, and, unlike earlier analyses, productivity shocks which link criminal engagement with employment status. Second, we seek empirical support using data on the 402 German regions and years 2009 – 2010, in a setting that not only allows for crime spatial multipliers but also circumvents reverse causality by exploiting exogenous changes in unemployment due to the crisis. As predicted by our theory, the destruction of the lowest productivity matches, measured by increases in unemployment rates, has a significant impact on pure property crime (housing burglary and theft of/from motor vehicles) and street crime. The analysis offers important implications for local government policy. |
| Keywords: | Crime, Unemployment, Spatial Econometrics, Global Financial Crisis |
| JEL: | C31 J64 K42 R10 |
| Date: | 2017–02–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lie:wpaper:39&r=eur |
| By: | Sam Friedman; Lindsey Macmillan |
| Abstract: | In this paper we explore for the first time regional differences in the patterning of occupational social mobility in the UK. Drawing on data from Understanding Society (US), supported by the Labour Force Survey (LFS), we examine how rates of absolute and relative intergenerational occupational mobility vary across 19 regions of England, Scotland and Wales. Our findings somewhat problematise the dominant policy narrative on regional social mobility, which presents London as the national ‘engine-room’ of social mobility. In contrast, we find that those currently living in Inner London have experienced the lowest regional rate of absolute upward mobility, the highest regional rate of downward mobility, and a comparatively low rate of relative upward mobility into professional and managerial occupations. This stands in stark contrast to Merseyside and particularly Tyne and Wear where rates of both absolute and relative upward mobility are high, and downward mobility is low. We then examine this Inner London effect further, finding that it is driven in part by two dimensions of migration. First, among international migrants, we find strikingly low rates of upward mobility and high rates of downward mobility. Second, among domestic migrants, we find a striking overrepresentation of those from professional and managerial backgrounds. These privileged domestic migrants, our results indicate, are less likely to experience downward mobility than those from similar backgrounds elsewhere in the country. This may be partly explained by higher educational qualifications, but may also be indicative of a glass floor or opportunity hoarding. |
| Keywords: | social mobility; regions; London; upward mobility; downward mobility; glass floor |
| JEL: | J61 P25 Z13 |
| Date: | 2017–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:80868&r=eur |
| By: | Carlsson, Magnus (Linnaeus University); Eriksson, Stefan (Department of Economics, Uppsala University) |
| Abstract: | In most countries, there are systematic age and gender differences in labor market outcomes. Older workers and women often have lower employment rates, and the duration of unemployment increases with age. These patterns may reflect age and gender differences in either labor demand (i.e. discrimination) or labor supply. In this study, we investigate the importance of demand effects by analyzing whether employers use information about a job applicant’s age and gender in their hiring decisions. To do this, we conducted a field experiment, where over 6,000 fictitious resumes with randomly assigned information about age (in the interval 35-70) and gender were sent to employers with a vacancy and the employers’ responses (callbacks) were recorded. We find that the callback rate starts to fall substantially early in the age interval we consider. This decline is steeper for women than for men. These results indicate that age discrimination is a widespread phenomenon affecting workers already in their early 40s in many occupations. Ageism and occupational skill loss due to aging are unlikely explanations of these effects. Instead, our employer survey suggests that employer stereotypes about three worker characteristics – ability to learn new tasks, flexibility/adaptability, and ambition – are important. We find no evidence of gender discrimination against women on average, but the gender effect is heterogeneous across occupations and firms. Women have a higher callback rate in female-dominated occupations and firms, and when the recruiter is a woman. These results suggest that an in-group bias affects hiring patterns, which may reinforce the existing gender segregation in the labor market. |
| Keywords: | age; gender; discrimination; field experiment; labor market |
| JEL: | J23 J71 |
| Date: | 2017–06–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:ifauwp:2017_008&r=eur |
| By: | Hatton, Timothy J. (University of Essex) |
| Abstract: | There is growing interest among economists in public opinion towards immigration, something that is often seen as the foundation for restrictive immigration policies. Existing studies have focused on the responses to survey questions on whether the individual would prefer more or less immigration but not on his or her assessment of its importance as a policy issue. Here I distinguish between preference and salience. Analysis of data from the European Social Survey and Eurobarometer indicates that these are associated with different individual-level characteristics. At the national level these two dimensions of public opinion move differently over time and in response to different macro-level variables. The results suggest that both dimensions need to be taken into account when assessing the overall climate of public opinion towards immigration. Finally, there is some evidence that both preference and salience are important influences on immigration policy. |
| Keywords: | public opinion, salience, attitudes to immigration |
| JEL: | D72 F22 J61 |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp10838&r=eur |
| By: | Elenka Brenna (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore; Dipartimento di Economia e Finanza, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore) |
| Abstract: | In several countries, taxpayers are given the option to detract from gross taxation a share of their out of pocket healthcare expenditure. This paper investigates the use of Healthcare Tax Credits (HTCs) in Italy through the analysis of a panel data which provides information on individual income tax from 2008 to 2014. The study focuses on the disparities emerging in the use of HTCs between Northern and Southern regions: per capita HTCs, either weighted for general population or for the number of claimants, are higher in the North than in the South of Italy. The existing differences in the average income between the two regional clusters may drive to inequalities in the out of pocket expenditure for healthcare services; however, the observed North-South gradient could also reveal possible disparities in the ability of using HTCs, mainly due to socioeconomic factors. A fixed effects OLS model is run to examine the impact of selected socioeconomic variables on regional per capita HTCs, with a particular focus on the role of education. Results corroborate the regressive imprinting of HTCs supported by literature and provide highlights on the role of education in explaining HTCs distribution among regions. Public money is reimbursed to regions where people are on average richer and better educated. More equitable objectives could be reached by allocating the same resources in the provision of services covered by NHS. |
| Keywords: | Health-related tax credits, regional disparities, healthcare access, personal income tax. |
| JEL: | I14 H31 H51 |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ctc:serie1:def060&r=eur |
| By: | Fontana, Magda; Iori, Martina; Nava, Consuelo Rubina (University of Turin) |
| Abstract: | The paper assesses the effects of the liberalization of the Italian electricity retail market by providing the first account of the determinants of switching by Italian households. It covers the interplay between demand and supply by including market concentration and horizontal integration among the factors that drive the choice of consumers. Finally, it inaugurates the application of Bayesian estimations in this topic area and presents a new dataset. |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:uto:dipeco:201721&r=eur |
| By: | Brosnan, Stephen |
| Abstract: | This paper estimates the relationship between sports participation and two broad categories of crimes – property crimes and person crimes- in 323 local authorities in England between 2012 and 2015. The aim of this paper is to assess whether participation in sporting activities influences an individual’s decision to engage in crime. Furthermore, the impact of socioeconomic conditions on crime are estimated also. The results of this paper indicate that sport participation reduces crime rates for both property and person crimes in English local authorities between 2012 and 2015. The findings suggest that sports participation has a stronger effect on person crimes as opposed to property crimes. The results show that a 10% increase in sports participation leads to a fall in person crimes of 1.30 and 1.56% while a 10% increase in sports participation rates leads to a fall in property crimes of between 0.64 and 0.73%. |
| Keywords: | sports participation, crime prevention, deterrence, property crime, person crime |
| JEL: | Z10 |
| Date: | 2017–04–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:78596&r=eur |
| By: | Glitz, Albrecht (Universitat Pompeu Fabra); Meyersson, Erik (Stockholm School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we investigate the economic returns to industrial espionage by linking information from East Germany's foreign intelligence service to sector-specific gaps in total factor productivity (TFP) between West and East Germany. Based on a dataset that comprises the entire flow of information provided by East German informants over the period 1970–1989, we document a significant narrowing of sectoral West-to-East TFP gaps as a result of East Germany's industrial espionage. This central finding holds across a wide range of specifications and is robust to the inclusion of several alternative proxies for technology transfer. We further demonstrate that the economic returns to industrial espionage are primarily driven by relatively few high quality pieces of information and particularly strong in sectors that were closer to the West German technological frontier. Based on our findings, we estimate that the average TFP gap between West and East Germany at the end of the Cold War would have been 6.3 percentage points larger had the East not engaged in industrial espionage. |
| Keywords: | espionage, productivity, R&D, technology diffusion |
| JEL: | D24 F52 N34 N44 O30 O47 P26 |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp10816&r=eur |
| By: | Jaroslaw Michal Nazarczuk (University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn); Stanislaw Uminski (Institute for Development; Faculty of Economics, University of Gdansk); Tomasz Brodzicki (University of Gdansk, Faculty of Economics; Institute for Development, Sopot) |
| Abstract: | In the light of the hereto insufficient empirical evidence on the determinants of location of exporters and given the access to a unique GIS-based database for counties in Poland (LAU 1) on the distances to diverse points of interest (POIs) and infrastructure endowment, and data on regional heterogeneity, we investigate the deep determinants of exporters’ location in Poland. Our analysis is mostly driven by the concepts of NEG theory and the firms’ heterogeneity concept. With the use of econometric modelling, in the first step, we identify the determinants of regional location of exporting firms. In the second step, we try to identify the differences in the locational decisions of firms distinguished by ownership form, namely domestic and foreign-owned exporters. Our findings indicate the more predictable behaviour of foreign-owned exporters, for which the quality of transport endowment and inputs plays a more significant role in the decision in comparison to indigenous exporters, affected to a larger extent by deep-rooted factors and path-dependency. The locational preferences of FOEs are more influenced by the proximity to the airport and the motorways as well as subject to agglomeration externalities. The results point furthermore to the significance of accessibility to markets as evidenced by the role of infrastructure endowment and the role of the greater regional human capital endowment. |
| Keywords: | locational determinants, the spatial distribution of exporters, regional trade, foreign investors, Poland |
| JEL: | R12 F14 R15 |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iro:wpaper:1701&r=eur |
| By: | Vincent Van Roy (European Commission - JRC); Daniel Nepelski (European Commission - JRC) |
| Abstract: | High-tech entrepreneurship is one of the main means by which new knowledge and technologies are converted into economic and social benefits. This report analyses the levels and determinants of high-tech entrepreneurship across European countries. To this end, it uses country-level data on high- and low-tech total early-stage entrepreneurial activity provided by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM). Panel data estimations for the period 2007-2014 reveal that EU Member States with better access to finance, less bureaucracy, more consistent policy regimes, favourable entrepreneurship education, and qualitative intellectual property rights that lower patent thicketing strategies exhibit a higher proportion of high-tech firm creation. In addition, greater technological density is associated with a higher rate of high-tech entrepreneurship creation, suggesting beneficial influences of path-dependency and agglomeration effects. |
| Keywords: | ecosystem; financial; growth; ICT; indicator; innovation; policy; research; industry |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc104865&r=eur |
| By: | Bingley, Paul (SFI - The Danish National Centre for Social Research); Martinello, Alessandro (Department of Economics, Lund University) |
| Abstract: | Education and wealth are positively correlated for individuals approaching retirement, but the direction of the causal relationship is ambiguous in theory and has not been identified in practice. We combine administrative data on individual total wealth with a reform expanding access to lower secondary school in Denmark in the 1950s, finding that schooling increases pension annuity claims but reduces the non-pension wealth of men in their 50's. These effects grow stronger as normal retirement age approaches. Labour market mechanisms are key, with schooling increasing job mobility, reducing housing equity, increasing leverage, and improving occupational pension benefits. |
| Keywords: | Education; Wealth; Labour market mechanisms; Pensions; Housing equity; Portfolio composition; Instrumental variable |
| JEL: | D31 G11 I24 I26 |
| Date: | 2017–06–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:lunewp:2017_009&r=eur |
| By: | Jan Abrell (ETH Zurich, Switzerland); Mirjam Kosch (ETH Zurich, Switzerland); Sebastian Rausch (ETH Zurich, Switzerland) |
| Abstract: | This paper exploits the randomness and exogeneity of weather conditions to identify the economic cost of decarbonization through renewable energy (RE) support policies. We find that both the aggregate cost and the distribution of cost between energy producers and consumers vary significantly depending on which type of RE technology is promoted reflecting substantial heterogeneity in production cost, temporal availability of natural resources, and market conditions (i.e., time-varying demand, carbon intensity of installed production capacities, and opportunities for cross-border trade). We estimate that the cost for reducing one ton of CO2 emissions through subsidies for solar are EUR 500-1870. Subsidizing wind entails significantly lower cost, which can even be slightly negative, ranging from EUR 5-230. While the economic rents for energy producers always decrease, consumers incur three to five times larger costs when solar is promoted but gain under RE policies promoting wind. |
| Keywords: | Decarbonization, Renewable Energy Policies, Wind, Solar, Electricity, Economic Cost, Distributional impacts |
| JEL: | Q28 Q48 Q54 L94 C01 |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eth:wpswif:17-273&r=eur |
| By: | Justine Pedrono; Aurélien Violon |
| Abstract: | Currency diversification, which measures how much of assets are denominated in foreign currency, introduces a credit risk diversification and a valuation effect due to fluctuations of exchange rate. It affects banks' leverage responsiveness to the value of assets, namely the leverage procyclicality. Using novel micro data on banks' exposures, we confront theoretical conclusions by focusing on the US dollar diversification of banks located in France between 1999 and 2015. Distinguishing between commercial and investment banks, our analysis first supports previous empirical results where investment banks are more pro-cyclical than commercial banks. Second, our results show that the largest pro-cyclicality of investment banks comes from the effect of currency diversification, especially from the valuation effect of currency diversification which increases procyclicality. Finally, our results confirm the theoretical prediction where a currency mismatch does not strongly affect leverage procyclicality. Our conclusions support the idea that currency diversification is relevant to micro and especially macro-prudential policy. |
| Keywords: | banks;procyclicality;exchange rate;diversification;balance sheet;financial cycle;financial intermediaries |
| JEL: | F3 F4 G15 |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cii:cepidt:2017-09&r=eur |
| By: | Maliranta, Mika; Valmari, Nelli |
| Abstract: | We characterize increases and decreases in plant-product -level output sales in the Finnish manufacturing sector during years 2006 to 2015. We show that during the recession of 2008 to 2009, the intensity of variation in plant-product -level sales diminished, and it took several years until the intensity of variation reached its pre-recession level. However in 2015 the intensity of variation was largest since 2006. We also decompose the changes in the plant-product -level output sales into changes in volume and changes in price. |
| Keywords: | Production, renewal of product structures, measurement of prices and quantities, manufacturing |
| JEL: | L11 L23 L25 L60 O12 |
| Date: | 2017–06–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rif:report:72&r=eur |
| By: | Francesco Pasimeni (University of Sussex - Science and Technology Policy Research Unit (SPRU)) |
| Abstract: | The Italian electricity system, based on a centralized grid, presents important inefficiencies in the transmission infrastructure and is highly import-dependent. At the same time, it has a high renewable potential. These three aspects might encourage Italy to shift from the traditional centralized grid to a new decentralized electricity system by adopting Micro-Grids (MGs). This transition, however, has not yet started. This work aims to study the possible scenarios of adoption and diffusion of MGs in Italy, by analysing the influence of regional factors, the potential role of subsidies and people’s attitude. An agent-based model is formulated in order to simulate the diffusion of MGs as a function of those characteristics and to analyse which policies could facilitate the adoption of MGs in the country. The results show the high dependence of the diffusion process on regional factors (electricity demand, renewable potential and population). Moreover, the model confirms that subsidies can encourage the diffusion (mainly when they are regional-based rather than national-based) and that a higher “green” attitude by users can accelerate the diffusion of MGs in Italy. |
| Keywords: | Micro-grids, Agent-based model, Innovation diffusion |
| Date: | 2017–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sru:ssewps:2017-09&r=eur |
| By: | Marion Ellison (Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, Scotland); Vittorio Sergi (Department of Economics, Society & Politics, Università di Urbino "Carlo Bo"); Nicola Giannelli (Department of Economics, Society & Politics, Università di Urbino "Carlo Bo") |
| Abstract: | Following a comparative analysis of these processes and outcomes the paper offers the hypothesis that distinct forms and processes of policy-making, and multi-level governance particularly with regard to the continuing involvement of different levels of government and collaboration with key stakeholders (employers, trade unions and representatives of vulnerable groups) are associated with distinct impacts in terms of the resilience and inclusion of vulnerable groups within national and local labour markets settings. Critically, whilst distinct policy pathways may be characterised by institutional diversity, political culture or traditional policy styles and organisational structures; the central objectives underlying distinct policy pathways is also significant. For example whilst some policy pathways are found to be based largely upon the promotion of resilient and inclusive labour markets some policy pathways are forged entirely or largely within policy architectures and processes defined by largely by fiscal constraints and the broader aim to reduce public expenditure in the short and medium term. More specifically, such pathways may not seek or gain the support of stakeholders and publics through social dialogue, partnership and consensus therefore these pathways may be defined as requiring exclusive rather than inclusive decision making processes. In this paper we offer an analysis of the relationship between differentiated forms and processes of policy making as distinct policy pathways on the labour market resilience and inclusion of vulnerable groups in twelve national settings including Italy, The Netherlands, Spain, Greece, Hungary, Germany, Switzerland, Scotland, The UK, Belgium, Sweden and Slovenia. |
| Keywords: | policy-making, policy style, policy innnovation, governance, inclusiveness, exclusion, resilience |
| Date: | 2017 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:urb:wpaper:17_01&r=eur |
| By: | Corsini, Lorenzo; Martelli, Irene |
| Abstract: | In the present work we exploit information on living conditions of individuals to build an estimation of their degree of need and deprivation. The information we use have often subjective components that help in identifying situations of need and we assume that deprivation is a latent variable that we estimate with IRT models on Italian data. We then relate this estimated trait to more objective and observable variables that thus could be used within policy actions and welfare programs to pinpoint situations where the estimated deprivation is high. |
| Keywords: | Item Response Theory; IRT; deprivation; degree of need; welfare programs. |
| JEL: | C40 I32 I38 |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:79787&r=eur |
| By: | Angela Parenti; Cristina Tealdi |
| Abstract: | In this paper we study the effects of Switzerland implementing the Schengen agreement in December 2008 on labour mobility. As vehicles are allowed to cross borders without stopping and residents in border areas are granted freedom to cross borders away from fixed checkpoints, we expect cross-border commuting to Switzerland to be higher after Switzerland joined the Schengen area. Using data from the European Labour Force Survey (ELFS), we estimate a Differencein-Differences model and find that the individual probability to crossborder commute to Switzerland has increased from a minimum of 3.2 percentage points to a maximum of 7 percentage points, according to different model specifications. Our result is particularly important due the timely and meaningful policy implications. |
| Keywords: | Schengen Agreement, LabourMobility, Commuting Costs, Policy Implementation. |
| JEL: | D04 J61 R10 R23 |
| Date: | 2017–01–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pie:dsedps:2017/213&r=eur |
| By: | Bastian , Anne (KTH); Börjesson, Maria (KTH) |
| Abstract: | We analyse changes in individual travel behaviour in Stockholm County over 30 years, using three large cross-sectional travel survey data sets. We show how travel patterns diverge over time between city, suburban and rural residents. We relate these diverging travel patterns to changes in the labour market, ICT use and the digital/knowledge economy, land-use and transport policy, increased gender equality, and population size, composition and location. |
| Keywords: | Travel behavior; Land use policy; Urban; Agglomeration; Car use; Bicycling; ICT |
| JEL: | R40 |
| Date: | 2017–06–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:ctswps:2017_009&r=eur |
| By: | Marie-Anne Valfort |
| Abstract: | This paper presents an overview of the socio-economic situation of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender and intersex people (LGBTI), primarily in OECD countries. After investigating the size of this population, the paper zooms in on attitudes toward LGBTI, LGBTI rights and perceived discrimination among LGBTI. It goes on to discuss the empirical strategies used to identify whether LGBTI fare worse than non-LGBTI and provides a systematic review of survey-based and experimental evidence on such an “LGBTI penalty” and its causes. This exploration points to substantial hurdles for LGBTI. In particular, (i) low legal recognition of same-sex couples hampers partnership stability and children’s well-being; (ii) LGBTI are bullied at school and suffer academically; (iii) LGBTI face hiring and wage discrimination; (iv) LGBTI show higher rates of physical and mental health problems, in particular due to social rejection. The paper concludes by reviewing anti-discrimination policies and defining critical avenues for future research. |
| Keywords: | bisexual, discrimination, education, family, gay, health, housing market, intersex, labour market, lesbian, LGBTI, poverty, transgender, well-being |
| JEL: | D10 I10 I20 I30 J12 J13 J15 J16 J70 |
| Date: | 2017–06–22 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:elsaab:198-en&r=eur |
| By: | Rune Dahl Fitjar Author-X-Name-First: Rune Dahl; Bram Timmermans Author-X-Name-First: Bram |
| Abstract: | Two ideas have emerged as central in evolutionary economic geography in recent years: First, innovation is often the result of meetings between related ideas, and regions are therefore best served by hosting a variety of related industries. Second, innovation often comes from the combination of different knowledge bases. However, there have been few attempts at linking these approaches in empirical studies. This paper connects the dots by examining relatedness among industries with similar and different knowledge bases in specific regional contexts. We focus on regions expected to have different types of innovation systems, from the organisationally thick and diversified RIS of large cities through the more specialised RIS in intermediate cities to the organisationally thin RIS found in small rural regions. The analysis finds that industries with different knowledge bases are related in various regional settings, with combinatorial knowledge base industries having a central role in many regions. However, there are also cases of potential lock-in, where relatedness is mainly found among regions with the same knowledge base. Length: |
| Date: | 2017–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:egu:wpaper:1712&r=eur |