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on Industrial Organization |
| By: | Aleksandra Jandric (Institute of Economic Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University, Prague); Adam Gersl (Institute of Economic Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University, Prague) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the relationship between private equity investment and industry-level performance in Europe over 2008-2023. We combine Invest Europe and Eurostat data to construct harmonized country-sector-year panels covering 16 countries overall and 10 sectors, with outcome-specific estimation samples. PE intensity is measured relative to sectoral production value and enters the models with a one-year lag. Baseline fixed-effects models are complemented by additional fixed-effects structures, timing tests and robustness checks. Results indicate that higher lagged PE intensity is consistently associated with stronger subsequent nominal growth in output and value added. Personnel-cost growth is also generally positively associated with PE intensity. By contrast, the employment association is weaker: it loses statistical significance under several robustness checks and does not display the temporal ordering observed for the monetary outcomes. The paper updates the limited European industry-level evidence using a novel harmonized dataset and a period covering substantially different economic conditions, offering new insight into the extent to which PE investment intensity is associated with broader sector-level outcomes. |
| Keywords: | Private equity; Investment; Industry growth; Production; Employment; Panel data; Europe |
| JEL: | G24 G32 C23 E44 L25 |
| Date: | 2026–08 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fau:wpaper:wp2026_22 |
| By: | Pandey, Aarni; Ganjoo, Ananta |
| Abstract: | The rapid proliferation of digital platforms has fundamentally disrupted the competitive landscape, exposing the structural inadequacies of traditional antitrust reforms that were designed for industrial-era markets. This paper examines the evolving intersection of antitrust law, technological advancement and innovation policy in the context of modern digital economies. Drawing on a comprehensive review of regulatory developments across major jurisdictions, including the United States, the European Union, China and India, the study analyses how legacy antitrust doctrines have struggled to address the complex characteristics of digital markets, including network effects, data-driven market power, zero-price services, and winner-takes-all dynamics. The paper identifies a critical tension at the heart of digital antitrust reform: the imperative to prevent monopolistic entrenchment by dominant gatekeepers, while simultaneously preserving the conditions for dynamic innovation that drives technological progress. Through an analysis of four core themes: the Regulation of Antitrust Laws in Digital Economies, Impact of Antitrust reforms on innovation, Evolution of Antitrust reforms with technological advancement and What adaptive regulation looks like, this paper constructs a multi-layered understanding of what antitrust reform looks like. The findings suggest that ex-ante regulatory instruments, such as the EU Digital Markets Act, represent a paradigm shift from reactive, litigation-based enforcement towards forward-looking structural obligations on designated gatekeepers. While such mechanisms offer greater predictability and speed, they also risk over-regulation and innovation deterrence if not calibrated with precision. The paper argues for a hybrid regulatory architecture, one that combines robust ex-ante obligations with flexible ex-post enforcement, interoperability standards, and evidence-based threshold criteria to achieve a sustainable equilibrium between competitive markets and an innovation-enabling environment. |
| Date: | 2026–07–27 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:lawarc:dk8sp_v1 |
| By: | Scott Kaplan; Ryan Raimondi |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the impact of geographic proximity to and utilization of publicly funded advisory services offered to US small businesses on firm take-up and performance. We leverage a novel administrative dataset from the Northern California Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Network covering all firm-center interactions from 2006-23. To address endogeneity in firm engagement with centers, we exploit exogenous variation in center-firm geographic proximity generated by center closures and openings. We instrument for paired center-firm consulting time with changes in distance resulting from these organizational shifts. A one standard deviation reduction in distance between a firm and corresponding center (20 miles) increases expected annual consulting time by 0.15 hours (7.5%); each additional consulting hour raises average firm annual revenue and employment by 3.6-5.2% and 1.6-2.9%, respectively. Back-of-the-envelope calculations suggest advisory services are cost-effective. This study provides novel causal evidence on take-up and effectiveness of small business advisory services in the US using quasi-experimental variation in geographic proximity. Our findings highlight the importance of both physical distance and localized expertise in shaping small business outcomes. |
| Date: | 2026–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2607.07849 |
| By: | Emmanuel Dhyne; Amil Petrin; Frederic Warzynski |
| Abstract: | This paper studies how the removal of price regulation was associated with changes in quality, efficiency, and welfare in the Belgian bread and cake industry. In the summer of 2004, price controls on bread were abolished. Because most firms in this industry produce both bread and cakes, the reform provides a useful setting in which to examine both direct changes in the deregulated market and spillovers to a related product line. We use detailed firm-product-level information on values and physical quantities to estimate product quality, technical efficiency, marginal costs, markups, and welfare. We find that deregulation was associated with substantial improvements in both quality and efficiency. Welfare increased through gains in consumer surplus and producer surplus, and the gains were not confined to bread. We also find evidence of spillovers to cake production, suggesting that deregulation encouraged technological upgrading that affected firms' broader production process. |
| Keywords: | multi product firms, efficiency, cost estimation, markups, spillovers, welfare |
| JEL: | L11 L25 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_12900 |