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on Economic Geography |
| By: | McArthur, David Philip (Stord/Haugesund University College); Thorsen, Inge (Stord/Haugesund University College); Ubøe, Jan (Dept. of Finance and Management Science, Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration) |
| Abstract: | Traffic congestion and the policies to combat it have been studied extensively. However, most studies neglect the labour market impacts of congestion. Many also fail to account for the simultaneity between commuting and migration. This paper models impacts such as unemployment disparities, changes in commuting flows and changes in the flow of migrants by adopting an agent based simulation approach. This approach has the strength that it allows the simultaneous consideration of commuting, migration and labour force participation decisions. The results obtained have important theoretical and policy implications and show how an "optimal" charge may, in fact, be sub-optimal. |
| Keywords: | Congestion; Road pricing; Agent-based approach; Spatial interaction; Infrastructure investment |
| JEL: | J61 R12 R23 R41 R48 |
| Date: | 2009–04–14 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:nhhfms:2009_003&r=geo |
| By: | Matthias Wrede (University of Marburg) |
| Abstract: | This paper analyzes the impact of fiscal equalization on asymmetric tax competition when positive agglomeration externalities are present. It shows that equalization of standardized tax revenue improves the spatial allocation of capital provided that agglomeration externalities are sufficiently strong. |
| Keywords: | Agglomeration, tax competition, fiscal equalization. |
| JEL: | R12 H71 H73 |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ieb:wpaper:2009/4/doc2009-5&r=geo |
| By: | Daniel F. Heuermann (Institute for Labour Law and Industrial Relations in the EC, University of Trier) |
| Abstract: | The paper sheds light on the impact of local human capital endowments on individual wages in Western Germany. Using panel data it shows that regional wage differentials are partly attributable to localized human capital externalities arising from the regional share of highly qualified workers. Employing the regional number of public schools and of students as instrumental variables, the paper shows that human capital externalities are underestimated in ordinary panel regressions for highly qualified workers due to supply shifts of workers of different skills. An an alysis by sector reveals that human capital externalities are more pronounced in manufacturing than in the service sector. We find indication that highly qualified workers benefit from intraindustry knowledge spillovers, while non-highly qualified workers profit from pecuniary externalities between industries. Our findings are stable among a variety of indicators of regional human capital and robust to the inclusion of other sources of increasing returns, as well as wage curve, price level, and amenity effects. |
| Keywords: | Human Capital Externalities, Agglomeration, Urban Wage Premium |
| JEL: | D62 D83 J24 J31 O15 |
| Date: | 2009–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iaa:wpaper:200903&r=geo |
| By: | Barbara Despiney (CES - Centre d'économie de la Sorbonne - CNRS : UMR8174 - Université Panthéon-Sorbonne - Paris I) |
| Abstract: | The chapter concentrates on the positive development dynamics of "industrial districts" based on the network of Small an Medium-Sized firms in Poland.The crux of the matter is to establish whether or not industrial districts constitute a model for the regenaration of local and regional economies in Central European Countries. |
| Keywords: | regional development; industrial clusters; Poland |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:cesptp:halshs-00374435_v1&r=geo |
| By: | Kukenova, Madina; Monteiro, Jose-Antonio |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the finite sample properties of estimators for spatial dynamic panel models in the presence of several endogenous variables. So far, none of the available estimators in spatial econometrics allows considering spatial dynamic models with one or more endogenous variables. We propose to apply system-GMM, since it can correct for the endogeneity of the dependent variable, the spatial lag as well as other potentially endogenous variables using internal and/or external instruments. The Monte-Carlo investigation compares the performance of spatial MLE, spatial dynamic MLE (Elhorst (2005)), spatial dynamic QMLE (Yu et al. (2008)), LSDV, difference-GMM (Arellano & Bond (1991)), as well as extended-GMM (Arellano & Bover (1995), Blundell & Bover (1998)) in terms of bias, root mean squared error and standard-error accuracy. The results suggest that, in order to account for the endogeneity of several covariates, spatial dynamic panel models should be estimated using extended GMM. On a practical ground, this is also important, because system-GMM avoids the inversion of high dimension spatial weights matrices, which can be computationally unfeasible for large N and/or T. |
| Keywords: | Spatial Econometrics; Dynamic Panel Model; System GMM; Monte Carlo Simulations |
| JEL: | C15 C33 |
| Date: | 2008–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:13404&r=geo |
| By: | Briones, Roehlano M. |
| Abstract: | For the Philippines, quantitative policy analysis should incorporate regional differences in welfare and economic structure, which arise partly from geographic constraints. However, existing CGE models offer limited analysis of regional effects or national impacts of region-specific interventions, owing to the absence of key regional data. This study formulates a regional CGE model that overcomes these limitations. Applications of the model yield the following results: i) completion of the tariff reform program in agriculture will contract some import-competing sectors in lagging regions, but improve welfare across all regions; ii) massive investments in marketing infrastructure promise bigger pay-offs, though with a trade-off between the size and spread of welfare gains across regions; iii) combining trade reform with marketing infrastructure investments mitigate some of the contractionary effects from the former; however the absence of welfare synergies suggest that the two sets of policies can be pursued independently. |
| Keywords: | trade liberalization, computable general equilibrium (CGE), regional economics, agricultural development, marketing infrastructure, welfare impact |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:phd:dpaper:dp_2009-03&r=geo |
| By: | Christopher Candelaria; Mary Daly; Galina Hale |
| Abstract: | Regional inequality in China appears to be persistent and even growing in the past two decades. We study potential offsetting factors and interprovincial migration to shed light on the sources of this persistence. We find that some of the inequality could be attributed to differences in quality of labor, industry composition, and geographical location of provinces. We also demonstrate that interprovincial migration, while driven in part by wage differences across provinces, does not offset these differences. Finally, we find that interprovincial redistribution did not help offset regional inequality during our sample period. |
| Keywords: | Income distribution ; China |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedfwp:2009-07&r=geo |
| By: | Stefania Vitali; Mauro Napoletano; Giorgio Fagiolo |
| Abstract: | This paper employs a homogenous firms database to investigate industry localization in European countries. More specifically, we compare, across industries and countries, the predictions of two of the most popular localization indices, i.e., the Ellison and Glaeser (1997) index and the Duranton and Overman (2005) index. We find that, independently from the index used, localization is a pervasive phenomenon in all countries studied, but the degree of localization is very uneven across industries in each country. Furthermore, we find that the two indices significantly diverge in predicting the intensity of the forces generating localization within each industry. Finally, we perform a cross-sectoral analysis of localized industries. We show that, in all countries, localized sectors are mainly ``traditional'' sectors (like jewelery, wine, and textiles) and sectors where scale economies are important. However, once one controls for countries' industrial structures science-based sectors turn out to be the most localized ones. |
| Keywords: | Industry Localization; Manufacturing Industries; Localization Indices; Spatial Concentration; Spatial correlation; Cross-country studies |
| JEL: | R12 R3 |
| Date: | 2009–03–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ssa:lemwps:2009/04&r=geo |
| By: | Giuseppe C.Ruggeri (University of New Brunswick) |
| Abstract: | This paper discusses the methodology for the calculation of federal fiscal flows in a federation and the measurement of interregional redistribution. It identifies five major steps: (a) the selection of the approach for calculating federal fiscal flows, (b)the allocation of federal revenues and expenditures among regions, (c) the choice of the appropriate concept of regional economic disparities, (d) the selection of the relevant indicators of interregional redistribution, and (e) the estimation of these indicators. It concludes with some suggestions for further research, stressing the need to develop a common methodology and to place the study of interregional redistribution in a dynamic context. |
| Keywords: | Methodology, interregional redistribution, fiscal federalism. |
| JEL: | B41 H77 |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ieb:wpaper:2009/3/doc2009-4&r=geo |
| By: | Li, Chuan-Zhong (Department of Economics); Isacsson, Gunnar (Department of Economics, Dalarna University, VTI, Borlänge) |
| Abstract: | This paper is concerned with the implicit values of urban accessibility and air quality in Sweden. Based on the hedonic wage and rent theory, we construct an econometric model to compute such values, and illustrate their implications for regional sustainability analysis. It is shown that for most Swedish cities, welfare has increased from 1986 to 1998 due to improved air quality but the positive effect is partly offset by the deteriorated accessibility in some areas. The results also indicate that the values people place on urban accessibility and air quality vary considerably across regions. |
| Keywords: | hedonic pricing; air quality; urban accessibility; welfare analysis |
| JEL: | Q51 R10 |
| Date: | 2009–03–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:uunewp:2009_002&r=geo |