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on Urban and Real Estate Economics |
| By: | Blickle, Kristian S. (Federal Reserve Bank of New York) |
| Abstract: | I study the effects of an increase in the supply of local mortgage credit on local house prices and employment by exploiting a natural experiment from Switzerland. In mid-2008, losses in U.S. security holdings triggered a migration of dissatisfied retail customers from a large, universal bank, UBS, to homogeneous local mortgage lenders. Mortgage lenders located close to UBS branches experienced larger inflows of deposits, regardless of their investment opportunities. Using variation in the geographic distance between UBS branches and local mortgage lenders as an instrument for deposit growth, I find that banks with an exogenous positive funding shock invest in strict accordance with their specialization (that is, local mortgage lending). Consequently, house price gains in neighborhoods around affected banks were more than 50 percent greater than those in neighborhoods around unaffected banks. I also find an increase in the number of employees at small firms, reliant on real estate collateral, in the former set of neighborhoods. My results show that local-mortgage-oriented banks affect house prices through the supply of credit and that bank specialization thereby plays an important role in the allocation of capital across sectors. |
| Keywords: | credit supply; liquidity shock; house prices; local banking; employment |
| JEL: | G20 G21 R30 |
| Date: | 2018–11–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fednsr:874&r=ure |
| By: | Lutz Kilian; Xiaoqing Zhou |
| Abstract: | Shocks to the demand for housing that originate in one region may seem important only for that regional housing market. We provide evidence that such shocks can also affect housing markets in other regions. Our analysis focuses on the response of Canadian housing markets to oil price shocks. Oil price shocks constitute an important source of exogenous regional variation in income in Canada because oil production is highly geographically concentrated. We document that, at the national level, real oil price shocks account for 11% of the variability in real house price growth over time. At the regional level, we find that unexpected increases in the real price of oil raise housing demand and real house prices not only in oil-producing regions, but also in other regions. We develop a theoretical model of the propagation of real oil price shocks across regions that helps understand this finding. The model differentiates between oil-producing and non-oil-producing regions and incorporates multiple sectors, trade between provinces, government redistribution, and consumer spending on fuel. We empirically confirm the model prediction that oil price shocks are propagated to housing markets in non-oil-producing regions by the government redistribution of oil revenue and by increased interprovincial trade. |
| Keywords: | Econometric and statistical methods, Housing, International topics, Labour markets, Regional economic developments |
| JEL: | F43 Q33 Q43 R12 R31 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bca:bocawp:18-56&r=ure |
| By: | Laurent Denant-Boemont; Carl Gaigné; Romain Gaté |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we study the effects of urban design on pollution and welfare. We build a theoretical model of residential choices with pollution externalities arising from commuting, where the size of the central business district (CBD) and the demand for housing are endogenous. We show that a polycentric city is desirable from welfare and ecological perspective, provided that travel speed and/or the number of roads directly connected with the CBD are sufficiently high. The spatial extension of cities remains the critical variable to curb transport-related urban pollution. |
| Keywords: | Urban form; Housing; Travel speed; Carbon emissions; Welfare. |
| JEL: | Q53 R14 R21 |
| Date: | 2017 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lvl:creacr:2017-02&r=ure |
| By: | Carmona, Juan; Lampe, Markus; Rosés, Joan |
| Abstract: | During the decades prior to the Civil War, Spain experienced a rapid process of urbanization, which was accompanied by the demographic transition and sizeable rural–urban migrations. This article investigates how urban housing markets reacted to these far-reaching changes, which increased demand for dwellings. To this end, this study employs a new hedonic index of real housing prices and constructs a cross-regional panel dataset of rents and housing price fundamentals. This new evidence indicates that rents were not a significant financial burden on low-income families and, hence, housing was affordable for the working classes. The article also shows that families’ access to new homes was facilitated by a sizeable growth in the housing supply. Substantial investments in urban infrastructure and the institutional framework enabled the construction of new homes at affordable prices. Our results suggest that housing problems were not as pervasive during the urban transition as the literature often seems to claim. |
| JEL: | N0 |
| Date: | 2017–05–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:68886&r=ure |
| By: | Takayama, Yuki |
| Abstract: | This study develops a model in which heterogeneous commuters choose their residential locations and departure times from home in a monocentric city with a bottleneck located at the entrance to the central business district (CBD). We systematically analyze the model by utilizing the properties of complementarity problems. This analysis shows that, although expanding the capacity of the bottleneck generates a Pareto improvement when commuters do not relocate, it can lead to an unbalanced distribution of benefits among commuters: commuters residing closer to the CBD gain and commuters residing farther from the CBD lose. Furthermore, we reveal that an optimal time-varying congestion toll alters the urban spatial structure. We then demonstrate through examples that (a) if rich commuters are flexible, congestion tolling makes cities denser and more compact; (b) if rich commuters are highly inflexible, tolling causes cities to become less dense and to spatially expand; and (c) in both cases, imposing a toll helps rich commuters but hurts poor commuters. |
| Keywords: | time-varying congestion toll; bottleneck congestion; urban spatial structure; heterogeneity |
| JEL: | D62 R21 R41 R48 |
| Date: | 2018–11–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:89896&r=ure |
| By: | Fischer, Manfred M. (WU Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien); Huber, Florian (University of Salzburg); Pfarrhofer, Michael (University of Salzburg); Staufer-Steinnocher, Petra (WU Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien) |
| Abstract: | This paper uses a factor-augmented vector autoregressive model to examine the impact of monetary policy shocks on housing prices across metropolitan and micropolitan regions. To simultaneously estimate the model parameters and unobserved factors we rely on Bayesian estimation and inference. Policy shocks are identified using high-frequency suprises around policy announcements as an external instrument. Impulse reponse functions reveal differences in regional housing price responses, which in some cases are substantial. The heterogeneity in policy responses is found to be significantly related to local regulatory environments and housing supply elasticities. Moreover, housing prices responses tend to be similar within states and adjacent regions in neighboring states. |
| Keywords: | Regional housing prices; metropolitan and micropolitan regions; factor-augmented vector autoregressive model; Bayesian estimation; high-frequency identification |
| JEL: | C11 C32 E52 R31 |
| Date: | 2018–11–16 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:sbgwpe:2018_007&r=ure |
| By: | Joshua S. Goodman; Michael Hurwitz; Jisung Park; Jonathan Smith |
| Abstract: | We demonstrate that heat inhibits learning and that school air-conditioning mitigates this effect. Student fixed effects models using 10 million PSAT-retakers show hotter school days in years before the test reduce scores, with extreme heat being particularly damaging. Weekend and summer heat has little impact, suggesting heat directly disrupts learning time. New nationwide measures of school air-conditioning imply such infrastructure largely offsets heats effects and passes simple benefit-cost tests. Without air-conditioning, a 1°F hotter school year reduces that years learning by one percent. Hot school days disproportionately impact minority students, accounting for roughly five percent of the racial achievement gap. |
| Keywords: | heat, climate, learning, air conditioning |
| JEL: | I20 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7291&r=ure |
| By: | Andersland, Leroy (University of Bergen, Department of Economics) |
| Abstract: | In 2005 the city of Bergen, Norway, went from a geographical catchment area high school intake system to a grade point average-based (GPA) intake system. The reform changed the composition of high school peer student characteristics substantially for comparable groups of students before and after the reform. This article compares changes in outcomes for students in Bergen before and after the reform to changes in the outcomes of students in control cities. Positive effects are found on test scores and grades at high school. |
| Keywords: | Analysis of Education; Peer effects; Tracking; High school; Natural experiment |
| JEL: | I21 J18 |
| Date: | 2017–08–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:bergec:2017_009&r=ure |
| By: | Bluhm, Richard (Institute of Macroeconomics, Leibniz University Hannover, and UNU-MERIT); Krause, Melanie (Hamburg University, Department of Economics) |
| Abstract: | Tracking the development of cities in emerging economies is difficult with conventional data. We show that satellite images of nighttime lights are a reliable proxy for economic activity at the city level, provided they are first corrected for topcoding. The commonly-used data fail to capture the true brightness of many cities. We present a stylized model of urban luminosity and empirical evidence which both suggest that these 'top lights' can be characterized by a Pareto distribution. We then propose a simple correction procedure which recovers the full distribution of city lights. Our results show that the brightest cities account for nearly a third of global economic activity. Applying this approach to cities in Sub-Saharan Africa, we find that primate cities are outgrowing secondary cities but are changing from within. Poorer neighborhoods are developing, but sub-centers are forming so that Africa's largest cities are also becoming increasingly fragmented. |
| Keywords: | Development, urban growth, night lights, top-coding, inequality |
| JEL: | O10 O18 R11 R12 |
| Date: | 2018–11–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:unm:unumer:2018041&r=ure |
| By: | Ron Boschma |
| Abstract: | This chapter explores patterns of structural change from a geographical perspective. It summarizes recent insights on the geography of structural change, and in particular on regional diversification. It shows how local capabilities and institutions impact on structural change, and why the capacity of regions to diversify differs substantially. This chapter describes how concepts like diversification and relatedness have been fruitfully combined in a rapidly expanding literature. Diversification refers to the emergence of new activities, an important feature of structural change. These new activities are often embedded in, or related to, existing activities at the national and regional scale, requiring similar capabilities. But new activities can also be unrelated to existing ones. For our understanding of structural change, the role of agency is considered crucial, as it shapes diversification at the regional level. |
| Keywords: | structural change, product space, regional diversification, related diversification, unrelated diversification, institutions, agency |
| JEL: | O18 R0 R11 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:egu:wpaper:1839&r=ure |
| By: | Ruxanda Berlinschi; Jan Fidrmuc |
| Abstract: | This paper proposes a theory of migration decisions in which cultural traits play a role. Individuals are assumed to value comfort (high wages) and conformity (interactions with individuals who share similar world views). Regions are assumed to differ economically (average wages) and culturally (average world views and their diversity). The model shows that self-selection of inter-regional migrants on world views is non-monotonic if one region is more diverse than the other, and it weakens with economic gaps between regions. This non-monotonicity can lead to a dichotomy of outcomes: culturally diverse regions become even more diverse because of migration, while culturally homogeneous regions become even more homogeneous. Consequently, Tieboutian sorting (people moving to the region in which world views are closer to theirs) only holds when regions have similar wages and diversity of world views. |
| Keywords: | migration, self-selection, culture, diversity, Tiebout model |
| JEL: | A13 F22 J61 Z10 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7294&r=ure |
| By: | Mehmet Balcilar (Department of Economics, Eastern Mediterranean University, Northern Cyprus, Turkey; Department of Economics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa; Montpellier Business School, Montpellier, France.); Elie Bouri (USEK Business School, Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Jounieh, Lebanon); Rangan Gupta (Department of Economics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa); Mark E. Wohar (College of Business Administration, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, USA, and School of Business and Economics, Loughborough University, Leicestershire, UK.) |
| Abstract: | Recent evidence, based on a linear framework, tend to suggest that while mortgage default risks can predict weekly and monthly housing returns of the United States, the same does not hold at the daily frequency. We however indicate that, the relationship between daily housing returns with mortgage default risks is in fact nonlinear, and hence a linear predictive model is misspecified. Given this, we use a k-th order nonparametric causality-in-quantiles test, which in turn, allows us to test for predictability over the entire conditional distribution of not only housing returns, but also volatility, by controlling for misspecification due to nonlinearity. Based on this model, we show that mortgage default risks do indeed predict housing returns and volatility, barring at the extreme upper end of the respective conditional distributions. |
| Keywords: | Mortgage Default Risks, Housing Returns and Volatility; Higher-Order Nonparametric Causality in Quantiles Test |
| JEL: | C22 R30 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pre:wpaper:201875&r=ure |
| By: | Haixiao Wu (George Washington University) |
| Abstract: | Many papers have found a positive relation between income inequality and city size in the US and other countries. This literature has assumed that the relation is linear. Tests performed here find that it is concave, resembling the classic Kuznets curve. A theoretical model based on the Income Elasticity Hypothesis (IEH), explains that inequality is a concave function of housing prices that tend to increase with city size. Further tests confirm the concavity of the relation between Gini and housing costs that is predicted by the IEH. Although for most cities, inequality still rises with housing costs, if housing costs continue to grow in large cities, inequality should eventually fall, resembling the Kuznets Curve at the country level. |
| JEL: | R12 R23 D3 O15 |
| Date: | 2018–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gwi:wpaper:2018-09&r=ure |
| By: | Christina Christou (School of Economics and Management, Open University of Cyprus, 2252, Latsia, Cyprus); Rangan Gupta (Department of Economics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa); Wendy Nyakabawo (Department of Economics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the impact of uncertainty shocks on the housing market of the United States using the time-varying parameter factor augmented vector autoregression (TVP-FAVAR). We use a comprehensive quarterly time-series dataset on real economic activity, price, and financial variables, besides the housing market variables, covering the period 1975:Q3 to 2014:Q3. Besides housing prices, we also consider variables related to home sales, permits, starts, as well as housing market sentiment. In general, the results of the cumulative response of housing variables to a 1 standard deviation positive uncertainty shock at the one-, four- and eight quarter horizon tends to change over time, both in terms of sign and magnitude, with the uncertainty shock primarily affecting home sales, permits and starts over short-, medium and long-runs, and housing sentiment in the medium-term. Interestingly, the impact on housing prices is statistically insignificant. |
| Keywords: | housing market, stochastic volatility, time-varying parameter, FAVAR, uncertainty shocks |
| JEL: | C15 C32 E32 R31 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pre:wpaper:201870&r=ure |
| By: | Calem, Paul S. (Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia); Jagtiani, Julapa (Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia); Maingi, Ramain Quinn (Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines changes in the redefault rate of mortgages that were selected for modification during 2008–2011, compared with that of similarly situated self-cured mortgages. We find a large decline in the redefault rate of both modified and self-cured mortgages over this period, but the improvement was greatest for modifications. Our analysis has identified several important factors contributing to the greater improvement for modified loans, including an increasing share of principal-reduction modifications, which appear to be more effective than other types of modification and increasingly generous modification terms (larger payment reductions). The favorable impacts of principal and payment reductions on household finances were enhanced by improving economic conditions, resulting in more effective modifications. Even after accounting for these factors, we still observe a larger decline in the redefault rate for modifications compared with similarly situated self-cured loans. This residual effect may reflect servicer “learning-by-doing”; that is, servicers gained knowledge as modification activity ramped up, resulting in more successful modification programs for later cohorts. |
| Keywords: | mortgage modification; mortgage default; mortgage servicing |
| JEL: | G21 G28 |
| Date: | 2018–11–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedpwp:18-26&r=ure |
| By: | Bertocchi, Graziella; Brunetti, Marianna; Zaiceva, Anzelika |
| Abstract: | Using rich Italian data for the period 2006-2014, we document sizeable gaps between native and immigrant households with respect to wealth holdings and financial decisions. Immigrant household heads hold less net wealth than native, but only above the median of the wealth distribution, with housing as the main driver. Immigrant status reduces the likelihood of holding risky assets, housing, mortgages, businesses, and valuables, while it increases the likelihood of financial fragility. Years since migration, countries of origin, and the pattern of intermarriage also matter. The Great Recession has worsened the condition of immigrants in terms of wealth holdings, home ownership, and financial fragility. |
| Keywords: | immigrants,household finance,wealth,financial portfolios,Great Recession |
| JEL: | F22 G11 D14 E21 J15 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:glodps:280&r=ure |
| By: | Lars Mewes |
| Abstract: | Cities are epicenters for invention. Scaling analyses have verified the productivity of cities and demonstrate a super-linear relationship between cities? population size and invention performance. However, little is known about what kinds of inventions correlate with city size. Is the productivity of cities only limited to invention quantity? We shift the focus on the quality of idea creation by investigating how cities influence the art of knowledge combination. Atypical combinations introduce novel and unexpected linkages between knowledge domains. They express creativity in inventions and are particularly important for technological breakthroughs. Our study of 174 years of invention history in metropolitan areas in the United States (US) reveals a super-linear scaling of atypical combination with population size. The observed scaling grows over time indicating a geographic shift towards cities since the early 20th century. The productivity of large cities is thus not only restricted to quantity, but also includes quality in invention processes. |
| Keywords: | Atypical Knowledge Combination, Cities, Historic Patent Data, Invention; Scaling Analysis |
| JEL: | O30 O31 O33 R11 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:egu:wpaper:1841&r=ure |
| By: | INUI Tomohiko; KODAMA Naomi; NAGASHIMA Masaru |
| Abstract: | Past literature suggests that fewer days of schooling in a week may increase educational inequality based on household income, as richer households may increase their private educational expenditure to take the better advantage of increased leisure, while poorer ones may not. Then, does the inequality decrease when school days increase? We empirically assess this question by using the unique policy change in Japan that increased schools with class on Saturday in addition to the usual Monday-to-Friday class. Our estimation with child-level panel data reveals that when review sessions are offered for free by school teachers on Saturdays, households decrease educational expenditure, and this effect is stronger for poorer households while it is insignificant for richer ones. This suggests the possibility that increased school days may reduce educational inequality. We further report heterogeneous impacts of different types of Saturday class, and discuss policy implications based on the results. |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eti:dpaper:18080&r=ure |
| By: | Rune V. Lesner (Department of Economics and Business Economics, Aarhus University, Denmark); Anna Piil Damm (Department of Economics and Business Economics, Aarhus University, Denmark); Preben Bertelsen (Department of Psychology and Behavioural Sciences,, Aarhus University, Denmark); Mads Uffe Pedersen (Department of Psychology and Behavioural Sciences, Centre for Alcohol and Drug Research, Aarhus University, Denmark) |
| Abstract: | We set up an on-the-job learning model to explain how spare-time on-the-job training affects life skills formation of adolescents. We obtain causal estimates by exploiting variation between employed twins and estimation of a value-added model using full population Danish administrative data. We find that spare-time work experience has no effect on school absenteeism, reduces crime, increases school grades and the speed of enrollment into upper secondary education. We interpret our findings as evidence that the positive effect from on-the-job learning in spare-time jobs on life skill formation more than outweigh the potential negative consumption and time-use externalities of spare-time work. |
| Keywords: | Student employment, Spare-time jobs, Teenagers, Youth, Character skills, Life skills, Human capital, Crime, Juvenile Delinquency, Risky behavior, Educational attainment |
| JEL: | J24 J22 I21 |
| Date: | 2018–11–19 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:aah:aarhec:2018-09&r=ure |
| By: | Lucie Kureková (University of Economics, Prague) |
| Abstract: | Certainly, the spatial distribution of economic activities is far from uniform in many countries European Union and significant differences at national and at regional level are still persistent. The aim of this study is to investigate and compare regional disparities in member states of European Union and estimate the effect of regional migration flows on convergence of regions. This study focuses on income and employment, these two factors are considered as major determinants of migration and on the contrary, migration can contribute to reducing income and employment disparity between regions. The econometric analysis uses panel data primarily from Eurostat Database. |
| Keywords: | disparity, convergence, European Union, regions, migration, income, unemployment rate |
| JEL: | C20 F20 J60 |
| Date: | 2018–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iefpro:7109900&r=ure |
| By: | Annette Alstadsæter; Wojciech Kopczuk; Kjetil Telle (Statistics Norway) |
| Abstract: | In 2005, over 8% of Norwegian shareholders transferred their shares to new (legal) tax shelters intended to defer taxation of capital gains and dividends that would otherwise be taxable in the aftermath of 2006 reform. Using detailed administrative data we identify family networks and describe how take up of tax avoidance progresses within a network. A feature of the reform was that the ability to set up a tax shelter changed discontinuously with individual shareholding of a firm and we use this fact to estimate the causal effect of availability of tax avoidance for a taxpayer on tax avoidance by others in the network. We find that take up in a social network increases the likelihood that others will take up. This suggests that taxpayers affect each other's decisions about tax avoidance, highlighting the importance of accounting for social interactions in understanding enforcement and tax avoidance behavior, and providing a concrete example of “optimization frictions” in the context of behavioral responses to taxation. |
| Keywords: | Tax avoidance; social interaction; networks |
| JEL: | H26 H25 H32 L14 |
| Date: | 2018–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ssb:dispap:886&r=ure |
| By: | Alejandro Paniagua (OECD); Angelina Sánchez-Martí (Autonomous University of Barcelona) |
| Abstract: | New teachers entering the profession are said to bring with them enthusiasm, idealism and recent training – a promising combination for innovative teaching. However, these early career teachers are also commonly portrayed as professionals facing exceptional challenges, with fragile identities who leave the career in high proportions. Can these new teachers help schools to innovate while trying to perform as effective teachers during their initial years? This paper argues that the difficulties most early career teachers encounter, which have largely remained unchanged over the last 50 years, are embedded characteristics of the teaching profession. Further, it discusses the importance of the first five years of the teacher career in acquiring critical professional skills, and highlights the importance of context over experience per se. The paper concludes by making the case that these first five years could work as a residency for early career teachers – similar to that of medical training – where they could receive support to experiment in sheltered environments. This professional residency might represent a policy milestone in the building of a continuum of teachers’ professional growth and development. |
| Date: | 2018–12–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:eduaab:190-en&r=ure |
| By: | Andersland, Leroy (University of Bergen, Department of Economics) |
| Abstract: | Do biased perceptions and behaviors affect teachers’ assessment of students? To investigate this question, a number of studies use data on two different scores for the same individuals: one non-blind score based on classroom tests assessed by the student’s own teacher and one blind test score based on a national exam marked externally and anonymously. In the absence of bias in teachers’ assessments, it is argued, there should not be significant differences in the gaps in blind and non-blind scores between different groups. This article present a parsimonious econometric framework that distills out the assumptions necessary to identify group bias in teachers’ assessment from such a comparison of blind and non-blind scores. This framework lays the foundation for our empirical analysis, where data from the Norwegian school system are employed to estimate and interpret differences between nonblind and blind assessments. The results show that the relationship between the subject ability and non-blind results tends to be different from the relationship between subject ability and blind results. Evidence of this is found both when grades are recorded when teachers grade the same test and when they grade based on different assessments that are meant to test the same skill. The difference between non-blind and blind will therefore be a function of the skill tested. This leads to different estimates of the group bias when holding ability fixed. |
| Keywords: | Discrimination; bias; human capital; test scores |
| JEL: | D63 D80 J15 J16 J24 |
| Date: | 2017–08–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:bergec:2017_010&r=ure |
| By: | Andersland, Leroy (University of Bergen, Department of Economics) |
| Abstract: | In the first decade of the 2000s, the proportion of children aged one or two attending formal childcare in Norway more than doubled, from 38% to 79%. There was an especially large increase in public funding to childcare centers starting in 2003, which accelerated this attendance growth. The consequences of this expansion on children`s outcomes remain largely unknown. This paper study the effects of attending childcare on school performance by using the fact that the childcare expansion was greater in municipalities that had low prereform childcare coverage. The results do not indicate any average effect of the childcare expansion on test scores at age 10. Dividing the municipalities into groups by childcare quality as measured by pre-reform observables, the results show a positive effect on school performance in municipalities with high pre-reform quality and a negative effect in municipalities with low pre-reform quality. Further analyses suggest that not only quality differences between municipalities but also the age of entering formal childcare explain the findings. |
| Keywords: | Public Policy; Institutions; Childcare; Difference-in-Difference |
| JEL: | D02 D10 H31 J13 |
| Date: | 2017–08–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:bergec:2017_008&r=ure |
| By: | Arnaud Chevalier; Benjamin Elsner; Andreas Lichter; Nico Pestel |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the impact of immigration on public policy setting. We exploit the sudden arrival of eight million forced migrants in West Germany after WWII. These migrants were poorer than the local population but had full voting rights and were eligible for social welfare. We show that cities responded to this shock with selective tax raises and shifts in spending. Voting data suggests that these changes were partly driven by the immigrants’ political influence. We further document a strong persistence of the effect. The initial migration shock changed the preferences for redistribution of the following generations. |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:diw:diwsop:diw_sp994&r=ure |
| By: | David P. Glancy; Robert J. Kurtzman |
| Abstract: | We study how bank loan rates responded to a 50% increase in capital requirements for a subcategory of construction lending, High Volatility Commercial Real Estate (HVCRE). To identify this effect, we exploit variation in the loan terms determining whether a loan is classified as HVCRE and the time that a treated loan would be subject to the increased capital requirements. We estimate that the HVCRE rule increases loan rates by about 40 basis points for HVCRE loans, indicating that a one percentage point increase in required capital raises loan rates by about 9.5 basis points. |
| Keywords: | Basel III ; Capital Requirements ; Commercial Real Estate |
| JEL: | G38 G28 G21 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedgfe:2018-79&r=ure |
| By: | Johanna Lacoe; Raphael W. Bostic; Arthur Acolin |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the role crime policy plays in shaping the trajectory of neighborhoods. |
| Keywords: | Crime, Investment, Neighborhoods |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mpr:mprres:7fb75eadaa22413b8b6d01a433269eab&r=ure |
| By: | Bakucs, Z.; Ferto, I. |
| Abstract: | The enlargement of the European Union (EU) led to an increase in regional development differences, challenging the EU structural policy. Whilst there are a wealth of papers discussing international and across EU development convergence, the issue seems under-researched at national level, especially when smaller territorial units are considered. This paper aims to partially fill this gap, by using low aggregation (Local Administrative Unit 1, LAU1) territorial data between 2002 and 2013 - a period that comprises Hungary s EU accession and also the years of the recent global financial crisis. We employ a novel approach to circumvent the lack of income, productivity or competitiveness data at LAU1 level by deriving two Regional Development Indices (RDI) resting on the estimation of an internal migration functions. Once the RDIs are estimated, we proceed to a test sigma, beta and unit root convergence. Further, we assess the probabilities of LAU1 region specific RDIs of changing their positions within distributional quartiles. Results regional divergence and low mobility of regions with rather bleak consequences for Hungarian and indeed European cohesion aims. Acknowledgement : Zoltan Bakucs greatfully acknowledges support from National Research, Development and Innovation Office (OTKA Project no. K 120080, "Impact of Rural Development Policy in Hungary. A Complex View"). |
| Keywords: | Community/Rural/Urban Development |
| Date: | 2018–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:iaae18:277230&r=ure |
| By: | Andrea Morrison |
| Abstract: | In this paper we study the impact of spinoff generation events on the performance of parent organizations. Using data from the Italian motorcycle industry (1893-1993), we find that parents have higher survival chances after a spinoff generation event, confirming results from previous studies about other manufacturing industries. We also show that these enhanced survival patterns differ across time and space, and we link these effects to institutional differences: spinoff generation did not determine any survival advantage for parent firms in the Fascist era and in the Turin cluster, while it had an additional positive effect in the Motorvalley cluster. The paper contributes to the literature on spinoff generation and employee mobility and adds to the debate on the role of institutions in evolutionary economic geography, by showing the importance of contextual factors for the performance of parent firms. |
| Keywords: | Spinoffs, Employee entrepreneurship, Parents, Institutions, Evolutionary economic geography |
| JEL: | B52 L26 O18 R11 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:egu:wpaper:1840&r=ure |
| By: | Davide Fiaschi; Cristina Tealdi |
| Abstract: | In this chapter we provide a descriptive analysis of inter-regional mobility in Italy for the period between 1992 and 2005. We use ISTAT data on the change of residence for groups of individuals according to age and education. We find evidence of two different types of migration. The first is the migration of working age individuals who respond to changes in economic conditions. The second is the return migration, which involves older cohorts of individuals, it is mainly driven by factors non-economic in nature and it is roughly constant over time. We also find that migration intensity generally increases over the period, but only for the first type of migration, while return migration, after a phase of stability, decreases in 2004 and 2005. Overall, the use of disaggregated data by age and education appears crucial for the correct identification of the determinants of migration. |
| Keywords: | migration types, change of residence, age and education groups |
| Date: | 2018–04–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pie:dsedps:2018/231&r=ure |
| By: | Aurel Hizmo; Shane M. Sherlund |
| Abstract: | In this note, we use a unique set of mortgage applications and locks data from January 2013 through September 2018 to examine the effects of the ATR/QM rule on mortgage lending and mortgage pricing. |
| Date: | 2018–11–16 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedgfn:2018-11-16&r=ure |
| By: | Alberto Alesina (Department of Economics, Harvard University, IGIER Bocconi, NBER and CEPR); Michela Carlana (Harvard Kennedy School and IZA); Eliana La Ferrara (Department of Economics, IGIER and LEAP, Bocconi University); Paolo Pinotti (Department of Social and Political Sciences at Bocconi University, DONDENA, and Fondazione Rodolfo Debenedetti) |
| Abstract: | If individuals become aware of their stereotypes, do they change their behavior? We study this question in the context of teachers' bias in grading immigrants and native children in middle schools. Teachers give lower grades to immigrant students compared to natives who have the same performance on standardized, blindly-graded tests. We then relate differences in grading to teachers' stereotypes, elicited through an Implicit Association Test (IAT). We find that math teachers with stronger stereotypes give lower grades to immigrants compared to natives with the same performance. Literature teachers do not differentially grade immigrants based on their own stereotypes. Finally, we share teachers' own IAT score with them, randomizing the timing of disclosure around the date on which they assign term grades. All teachers informed of their stereotypes before term grading increase grades assigned to immigrants. Revealing stereotypes may be a powerful intervention to decrease discrimination, but it may also induce a reaction from individuals who were not acting in a biased way. |
| Keywords: | immigrants, teachers, implicit stereotypes, IAT, bias in grading |
| JEL: | I24 J15 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:crm:wpaper:1817&r=ure |
| By: | Lisa Gianmoena; Vicente Rios |
| Abstract: | This study analyzes the determinants of resilience outcomes of European regions during the 2008-2013 crisis. Bayesian Model Averaging techniques are used in order to examine the empirical relevance of a large number of institutional, innovation, socio-demographic and labor market factors that could affect resilience patterns. The findings of this study suggest that regional disparities in resilience patterns are mainly determined by factors such as regional quality of government, the level of innovation, the functional specialization and by national level labor market institutions. The findings are robust to (i) the definition of the dependent variable and the (ii) employment of different g-priors and priors on model size. |
| JEL: | O11 C23 C11 |
| Date: | 2018–07–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pie:dsedps:2018/235&r=ure |
| By: | Aisling Reynolds-Feighan |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the US airline industry in terms of the relationships between the three largest full service carriers, American Airlines, Delta Airlines and United Airlines, and the set of regional carriers that are contracted to provide feeder services to them. The evolution of the regional carriers and the full service carriers are compared and recorded and the current industry structure and size is described. The paper uses the full set of Official Airline Guide (OAG) schedules for 2017 to analyse the industry structure and scale, overlap and seasonality in service provision among the groups of carriers and to understand the network organisation and capacity deployment strategy of the largest network carriers in the US market. The analysis provides evidence to explain how the large airlines are improving their cost and financial performance as well as significantly improving their operational efficiency through the achievement of high overall load factors. The sophistication in each airline’s schedule design and service delivery is highlighted. |
| Keywords: | Regional airlines; Feeder airlines; Seasonality; Airline network structures |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ucn:oapubs:10197/9551&r=ure |
| By: | Ruri Nakatsukasa (Department of Urban and Civil Engineering, Graduate School of Integrative Science and Engineering, Tokyo City University); Takashi Nakamura (Department of Urban and Civil Engineering, Tokyo City University) |
| Abstract: | In Japan, economic efficiency has been given priority and confused landscapes have been formed. Following these considerations, the Landscape Act was enacted in 2004 to develop favorable urban and rural landscapes. The Landscape Act stipulates that local governments can define Landscape Plan and landscape ordinance on their individuality so that they can reflect the unique characteristics of municipalities. It is important to enact landscape ordinance to secure a Landscape Plan, because the Landscape Plan is not legally binding on development activities. The specific objective of study is to clarify status of notification scheme for development activities prescribed by the landscape ordinance to investigate the status and effects of landscape ordinance. For the purpose, we conducted questionnaire survey to the local governments of 35 cities with population ranging from over 100,000 to less than 400,000 that do not fall in the three major metropolitan areas (Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka). In the notification scheme, standard of notification obligation is the height which emphasizes the view, the gross area that affect the landscape and the change of the appearance such as the color. As a result, there were more than 600 notifications in 9 cities, among them there were over half of those notifications exceeding the standard of the gross area, about 20% exceeded the standard of height, notifications on changes in appearance were less than 2%, and there were about 10 notifications concerning solar photovoltaic generation. |
| Keywords: | Landscape Act, Landscape plan, Landscape Ordinance, Notification Scheme |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:7310347&r=ure |
| By: | Dimitrios Pontikakis (European Commission - JRC); Mathieu Doussineau (European Commission - JRC); Nicholas Harrap (European Commission - JRC); Mark Boden (European Commission - JRC) |
| Abstract: | How can EU policies support the development of innovation capabilities in less developed regions? This note examines the mobilisation of the EU’s two major innovation support instruments: the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) and Horizon 2020 (H2020). Using data from Eurostat and European Commission administrative data on ESIF and H2020 funding, we observe a number of salient patterns: While newer member states benefit from higher research and innovation allocations from ESIF, participation in H2020 remains a formidable challenge. Across Europe we find that H2020 participation is closely associated with a number of proxies of the development of national and regional innovation systems. With few exceptions (most notably Slovenia and the Czech Republic) newer member states are characterised by lower overall R&D intensity, their research and innovation systems are less internationalised and most R&D is performed by public research institutions rather than businesses. Based on a review of literature on the determinants of participation in the H2020 (and its predecessor Framework Programmes), the history of today's advanced innovation systems and a consideration of the objectives of, modes of intervention of and possible complementarities between ESIF and H2020 we single out international collaboration and business innovation capabilities as important instrumental objectives for development-minded policy. |
| Keywords: | Synergies, Horizon 2020, ESIF, Innovation |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc112442&r=ure |
| By: | Andrew Coleman; Özer Karagedikli (Reserve Bank of New Zealand) |
| Abstract: | We construct a long time series of permanent and long-term arrivals and departures of construction workers to and from New Zealand between 1962 and 2018. After briefly describing the data and the sources, we discuss some key observations in the data. We observe that the large outflow of construction workers following the collapse of construction sector activity in the mid-1970s, combined with changes to migration rules in the early 1990s, led to a significant, persistent reduction in the net migration of construction workers. That reduction was probably partly responsible for the capacity constraints we currently observe in the construction sector. |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nzb:nzbans:2018/08&r=ure |
| By: | Bukowski, Paweł |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the effect on current student performance of the 19th century Partitions of Poland among Austria, Prussia and Russia. Using a regression discontinuity design, I show that student test scores are 0.6 standard deviations higher on the Austrian side of the former Austrian-Russian border, despite the modern similarities of the three regions. However, I do not find evidence for differences across the Prussian-Russian border. Using a theoretical model and indirect evidence, I argue that the Partitions have persisted through their impact on social norms toward local schools. Nevertheless, the persistent effect of Austria is puzzling, given the historical similarities of the Austrian and Prussian education systems. I argue that the differential legacy of Austria and Prussia originates from the Austrian Empire’s policy to promote Polish identity in schools and the Prussian Empire’s efforts to Germanize the Poles through education. |
| JEL: | I20 J24 N30 O15 |
| Date: | 2018–11–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:90643&r=ure |
| By: | Fumarco, Luca; Baert, Stijn |
| Abstract: | We contribute to the literature on relative age effects on pupils’ (non-cognitive) skills formation by studying students’ social network. We investigate data on European adolescents from the Health Behaviour in School Aged Children survey and use an instrumental variables approach to account for endogeneity of relative age while controlling for confounders, namely absolute age, season-of-birth, and family socio-economic status. We find robust evidence that suggests the existence of a substitution effect: the youngest students within a class e-communicate more frequently than relatively older classmates but have fewer friends and meet with them less frequently. |
| Keywords: | Relative age,adolescents,education,Europe,social network |
| JEL: | I21 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:glodps:277&r=ure |
| By: | Christophe André (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)); Petre Caraiani (Institute for Economic Forecasting, Romanian Academy); Adrian Cantemir Čalin (Institute for Economic Forecasting, Romanian Academy); Rangan Gupta (Department of Economics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates whether the counter-intuitive result of Gali and Gambetti (2015), where stock prices react positively to a monetary tightening, also holds for housing prices. Estimating a Bayesian VAR model based on an asset-pricing framework and allowing for rational bubbles for the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada, we find that housing prices respond negatively to a monetary policy shock, as common intuition would suggest. We also show, using a Markov Switching VAR model for the United States, that the response of housing prices to a monetary policy shock is not sensitive to the state of homebuyers sentiment. Hence, monetary policy can prove effective in fighting housing price bubbles. However, “leaning against the wind" has costs in terms of lost output while inflation becomes lower. Hence, before implementing such a policy, its relative efficiency and interactions with other policies, notably macro-prudential, need to be carefully considered. |
| Keywords: | housing, bubbles, VAR, monetary policy |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pre:wpaper:201877&r=ure |
| By: | Mace, Alan; Volgmann, Felix |
| Abstract: | An important claim for the categorisation and study of shrinking cities is that the experience of governance across shrinking cities may offer an alternative to hegemonic discourses of growth. However, there are methodological problems associated with categorizing then researching shrinking cities. Two key problems are: first, the category of shrinkage hides a multiplicity of cause and effect and; second, the danger of fetishizing the city against the reality of broader urban drivers of change. It is argued that the use of planning/governance narratives is a means to addresses the methodological issues, as narratives focus us on cities as places of practice. We apply the approach to Leipzig, once shrinking but now one of Germany’s fastest growing cities. We conclude that while there was a significant attempt to articulate an alternative to the imperative to grow, it remained dominant suggesting the need to develop a taxonomy of shrinking cities where only some will offer an alternative vision of ‘development’. |
| JEL: | Q15 |
| Date: | 2017–11–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:85212&r=ure |
| By: | Lv, Bingyang; Liu, Yongzheng; Li, Yan; Ding, Siying |
| Abstract: | This paper explores how fiscal incentives offered to local governments in China affect investment rates in their jurisdictions. Theoretically, we build a simple fiscal competition model to establish the linkage between local fiscal incentives and expenditure policy and consequently, capital movement. The key prediction of the model, borne out by data from Chinese provinces spanning 2004–2013, is that an increase in the local corporate income tax-sharing ratio, which proxies fiscal incentives offered to local governments, motivates local governments to compete for capital investment through increased public expenditures. Our results contribute to the fiscal federalism literature by showing that local fiscal incentives significantly shape policy choices and local economic performance. In addition, by exploring fiscal incentives offered to local governments, we offer a novel explanation for the unusually high investment rate in China that has been sustained over a prolonged period of time. |
| JEL: | H72 H77 O16 R53 |
| Date: | 2018–11–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bof:bofitp:2018_020&r=ure |
| By: | Giulio Ecchia; Francesca Gagliardi; Caterina Giannetti |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we first rely on small area techniques to derive from EU-SILC survey new indicators of compensatory and investment policies at regional level. While compensatory policies have mainly the goal of protecting individuals from “old” risks (e.g. old-age), investment-related social policies tend to focus more on "new social risks" (i.e. skill deficits). We rely on these new indicators to perform a data-driven SVAR analysis to investigate the casual relationships between youth labour market outcomes and these two types of spending. Our results support the view that investment policies are more effective for tackling new social challenges. |
| Keywords: | small area techniques, investment policies, compensatory policies, SVAR analysis, ICA |
| JEL: | C18 C54 E02 |
| Date: | 2018–09–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pie:dsedps:2018/236&r=ure |
| By: | Thiemann, Petra (Department of Economics, Lund University) |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the persistent effects of short-term peer exposure in a college setting. I exploit the random assignment of undergraduates to peer groups during a mandatory orientation week and follow the students until graduation. High levels of peer ability in a group harm the students’ test scores and lead to increases in the probability of early dropout; this result is driven by the adverse effect of high-ability peers on low-ability students. I find suggestive evidence for discouragement effects: Peer ability is negatively correlated with the students’ confidence in their academic ability after the first week. |
| Keywords: | peer effect; higher education; natural experiment; ability; educational attainment; dropout; major choice |
| JEL: | I21 I23 J24 |
| Date: | 2018–11–14 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:lunewp:2018_032&r=ure |
| By: | Okoruwa, V.; Ikudayisi, A. |
| Abstract: | Abstract Rapid urban growth changes the composition as well as diversification of the food consumed among urban households. Achieving food security in the midst of rapid urbanization require understanding how urban and food consumption intertwined. Thus this paper uses combined measure of food security to determine urban household food security status as influenced by extent of urbanization in Nigeria. Results show that urban effect generated through urbanicity index using principal component analysis revealed that most households were in low urban category. On the average, most urban household had diverse diet. However, combining per capita expenditure and dietary diversity index as measure of household food security revealed different level of food security status. Multinomial logit regression results reveals that gender of household head, employment status, educational status, household income, occupational status and urbanicity index significantly determine the probability of urban household being food secured at different levels of food security status. Relevant policy interventions that aim at securing sustainable food security were identified. Keywords: Food security, Dietary diversity, Food expenditure, Urbanicity index, Urban Nigeria JEL classification code: D12, R22, C25, C38, Acknowledgement : |
| Keywords: | Food Security and Poverty |
| Date: | 2018–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:iaae18:277053&r=ure |
| By: | Michael Landesmann (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw); Sandra M. Leitner (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw) |
| Abstract: | Two Forces of ‘Globalisation’ and Their Impact on Labour Markets in Western Europe 2005-2014 This paper investigates with a joint approach the impact of immigration and different measures of ‘offshoring’ on the labour demand and demand elasticities of native workers in four different occupational groups managers/professionals, clerks, craft workers and manual workers. It shows that of all measures of globalisation considered immigration has the most consistent and strongest negative effect on the employment of native workers, particularly on managers/professionals, clerks and manual workers. The employment effects of offshoring differ by the measure used and are positive for craft workers but, in contrast to what is typically found in the literature, negative for the high-skilled group of managers/professionals. Furthermore, immigration and offshoring both impact on natives’ labour demand elasticities but the effect differs by occupational group. Thus, while the immigration of craft workers reduces labour demand elasticities for native craft workers, the immigration of managers/professionals and clerks has the opposite effect on native workers in the same occupations. Furthermore, we test for cross effects of migration and outsourcing between the different occupational groups. |
| Keywords: | offshoring, immigration, labour demand, labour demand elasticity, occupations |
| JEL: | F16 F22 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wii:wpaper:156&r=ure |
| By: | Bordeman, Adam (California Polytechnic State University); Kannan, Bharadwaj (University of Colorado at Boulder); Pinheiro, Roberto (Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland) |
| Abstract: | We investigate the impact of mass layoff announcements on the equity value of industry rivals. When a layoff announcement conveys good (bad) news for the announcer, rivals on average witness a 0.44 percent increase (0.60 percent decrease) in cumulative abnormal stock returns. This effect is concentrated on rivals with high growth opportunities. Consistent with this finding, we also show that our results are strongest in technology industries, where growth opportunities matter the most. Our results suggest that investors perceive layoff announcements as news about industry prospects rather than just the announcer. |
| Keywords: | Mass Layoffs; Rivals; Firm characteristics; |
| JEL: | G14 J63 |
| Date: | 2018–08–31 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedcwq:161001&r=ure |
| By: | Mester, Loretta J. (Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland) |
| Abstract: | Fed governance is arcane and I’m not planning to talk about it today except to say that I chair the committee across the Reserve Banks that focuses on the Fed’s community development work. I have been asked to present some opening remarks on these efforts, why they are important to our mission of fostering a healthy economy, and what the Fed is doing to encourage more inclusive growth. My remarks will reflect my own views and not necessarily those of the Federal Reserve System or my colleagues on the Federal Open Market Committee. |
| Keywords: | Community Development; |
| Date: | 2018–11–29 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedcsp:102&r=ure |
| By: | Michal Bauer; Jana Cahlikova; Dagmara Celik Katreniak; Julie Chytilova; Lubomir Cingl; Tomas Zelinsky |
| Abstract: | This paper provides strong evidence supporting the long-standing speculation that decisionmaking in groups has a dark side, by magnifying the prevalence of anti-social behavior towards outsiders. A large-scale experiment implemented in Slovakia and Uganda (N=2,309) reveals that deciding in a group with randomly assigned peers increases the prevalence of anti-social behavior that reduces everyone’s payoff but which improves the relative position of own group. The effects are driven by the influence of a group context on individual behavior, rather than by group deliberation. The observed patterns are strikingly similar on both continents. |
| Keywords: | antisocial behavior; aggressive competitiveness; group membership; group decision-making; group conflict; |
| JEL: | C92 C93 D01 D64 D74 D91 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cer:papers:wp632&r=ure |
| By: | Zárate Marco, Anabel; Vallés Giménez, Jaime |
| Abstract: | This work examines in depth the hypotheses explaining the tax capacity of regional governments, also determining their tax effort and explanatory factors. The study is done for the Spanish regions, using different techniques which have rarely been applied in this area. The results show that these jurisdictions have exercised their tax autonomy responsibly, in response to different political, budget, and demographic factors and to the economic cycle. Also, an asymmetrical tax behaviour linked to income is observed: some regions have practically exhausted the possibilities of current sub-central taxes, while others still have ample fiscal space. |
| Keywords: | regional tax effort,regional taxes,tax potential,frontier techniques |
| JEL: | H71 H2 C23 C51 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:ifwedp:201879&r=ure |
| By: | Rohan Best; Paul J. Burke |
| Abstract: | Recent years have seen a spike in New Zealand’s road death toll, a phenomenon also seen in some other countries such as Australia. This paper analyses the short-run impact of fuel prices on road accident outcomes in New Zealand, including the numbers of road deaths, accidents, and injuries. Using data for the period 1989–2017, we find a negative relationship between fuel prices and key road-risk outcome variables, including the number of road deaths. There are similar results for models in levels and first differences. The number of serious injuries to cyclists tends to increase when fuel prices are high, however. Lower fuel prices appear to have contributed to New Zealand’s recent uptick in road accidents, pushing against the long-term trend of improved road safety. |
| Keywords: | fuel price, road accident death, road accident injury |
| JEL: | Q41 Q48 R41 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:een:camaaa:2018-57&r=ure |
| By: | Francisco J. Medina-Albaladejo (Universidad de Valencia, Spain); María Dolores Añón-Higón (Universidad de Valencia, Spain); Alfonso Díez-Minguela (Universidad de Valencia, Spain); José Miguel Lana-Berasain (Universidad Pública de Navarra, Spain) |
| Abstract: | Different factors have been proposed to explain why in some regions there is a greater tendency to form cooperatives. Although the debate remains open, the literature offers several interpretations. On the one hand, some studies have stressed the role played by human capital, market access and institutions, among other factors, while other studies have pointed to path dependence, that is to say, the development of social capital and trust within a society in the past encourages cooperation. Disentangling both effects is far from trivial and requires a careful analysis. In this study, we look at the spread of cooperativism within Catalonia from 1860 to 1939. Catalonia was not just the leading industrial region in Spain, but also where cooperatives first emerged and had a greater presence. In line with the existing evidence, we find that cooperativism spread from coastal municipalities to the hinterland. In this regard, it appears that literacy and accessibility facilitated this process. Besides, social capital cannot be discarded as a relevant factor, especially in rural contexts. |
| Keywords: | Cooperatives, Human Capital, Social Capital, Knowledge Transfer, Catalonia |
| JEL: | P13 Z13 N9 N3 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ahe:dtaehe:1808&r=ure |
| By: | Daly, Mary C. (Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco) |
| Abstract: | Remarks to the Regional Economic Development for Eastern Idaho (REDI), Idaho Falls, Idaho, Mary C. Daly, President and CEO, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, November 12, 2018. |
| Date: | 2018–11–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedfsp:190&r=ure |
| By: | Lin Yang |
| Keywords: | inequality, poverty |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:sticas:/211&r=ure |
| By: | Petr Janský; Marek Šedivý |
| Abstract: | Regional differences in prices levels are substantial in many countries, but little is known about how important they are for income inequality and relative poverty. To bridge this gap, we provide new evidence on the basis of the best available data and a novel two-step approach. First, we collect the largest cross-country dataset of regional price level estimates from 12 countries and use it to predict regional price levels in other countries. We then combine all these regional prices levels with household-level data from the Luxembourg Income Study, which gives us results for a final sample of 21 countries. We find that for some countries Gini coefficients and headcount poverty ratios are statistically significantly different when adjusted for regional price levels. For example, we show that adjusting for regional price levels would lower the Gini coefficients by 2% for Italy, 3% for Columbia and by 4% for Georgia, while it would increase the headcount poverty ratio by 6% for France and by 7% for Ireland. We conclude that regional price levels affect income inequality to a varying extent and should be taken into account by policy makers and in future research. |
| JEL: | O18 R11 R58 |
| Date: | 2018–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lis:liswps:752&r=ure |
| By: | Miyu Yada (Department of Urban and Civil Engineering, Graduate School of Integrative Science and Tokyo Engineering, TOKYO CITY UNIVERSITY); Takashi Nakamura (TOKYO CITY UNIVERSITY) |
| Abstract: | In Japan, the decline of the central district is one of the most serious urban problems.It is caused by decreased commercial function and the urban sprawl with disorderly constructed large commercial complex and motorization. In this study, we investigate employee number trend in the central district and suburban area. This study targets 35 cities with population ranging from over 100,000 to less than 400,000 that do not fall in the three major metropolitan areas (Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka) and We confirm actual employee number in central district from 2009 to 2014 and population from 2010 to 2015 .This study analyses the relationship between population and employee number , especially paying attention to ? Wholesale and retail trade? , ? Finance and insurance? ,? Scientific research, professional and technical service ?, ? Accommodations eating and drinking service?, ? Education, learning support? and ? Medical, health care and welfare? which account for a higher proportion in all industry types in central district and have distinctive trends.As a result the following points were demonstrated. A: Although the employee number in almost cities is on a decreasing trend, the employee number of? Medical, health care and welfare? in central district clearly is clearly on an increasing trend in all cities.B: Although the employee number of almost industry types is clearly on a decreasing trend, the employee number of ? Scientific research, professional and technical service ? and ? Education, learning support? is a more slowly decreasing trend than others. |
| Keywords: | employee number, Central district, revitalization of local cities |
| JEL: | R58 R14 R52 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:7310337&r=ure |
| By: | Longfeng Ye (Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University); Peter E. Robertson (Business School, University of Western Australia) |
| Keywords: | Rural-Urban Migration, Economic Growth, Capital Accumulation, China |
| JEL: | O1 O41 J60 |
| Date: | 2017 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:uwa:wpaper:17-02&r=ure |
| By: | Anita (A.G.) Kopanyi-Peuker (University of Amsterdam); Matthias Weber (University of St. Gallen, Vilnius University) |
| Abstract: | We study the role of experience in the formation of asset price bubbles. Therefore, we conduct two related experiments. One is a call market experiment in which participants trade assets with each other. The other is a learning-to-forecast experiment in which participants only forecast future prices, while the trade, which is based on these forecasts, is computerized. Each experiment comprises three treatments that vary the amount of information about the fundamental value that participants receive. Each market is repeated three times. In both experiments and in all treatments, we observe sizable bubbles. These bubbles do not disappear with experience. Our findings in the call market experiment stand in contrast to the literature. Our findings in the learning-to-forecast experiment are novel. Interestingly, the shape of the bubbles is different between the two experiments. We observe flat bubbles in the call market experiment and boom-and-bust cycles in the learning-to-forecast experiment. |
| Keywords: | Experimental finance; asset market experiment; asset pricing; behavioral finance; bubbles; experience. |
| JEL: | C92 D53 D90 |
| Date: | 2018–11–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tin:wpaper:20180092&r=ure |
| By: | Cortes, Kristle Romero (Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland); Glover, Andrew (Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland); Tasci, Murat (Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland) |
| Abstract: | Since the Great Recession, 11 states have restricted employers' access to the credit reports of job applicants. We document that county-level vacancies decline between 9.5 percent and 12.4 percent after states enact these laws. Vacancies decline significantly in affected occupations but remain constant in those that are exempt, and the decline is larger in counties with many subprime residents. Furthermore, subprime borrowers fall behind on more debt payments and reduce credit inquiries postban. The evidence suggests that, counter to their intent, employer credit check bans disrupt labor and credit markets, especially for subprime workers. |
| Keywords: | unemployment rate; credit score; credit check; |
| JEL: | J08 J23 J78 |
| Date: | 2018–01–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedcwq:162502&r=ure |
| By: | Elisabetta Cornago; Luisa Dressler |
| Abstract: | Disclosure of energy performance certificates (EPCs) is often incomplete, which hampers their effectiveness in relieving information asymmetries between landlords and tenants in the housing market. Even when a certificate is available, landlords do not always disclose it. This contradicts the unraveling result, according to which all landlords should disclose quality information unless it is costly to do so. We leverage a cross-sectional dataset of residential rental advertisements from the Belgian region of Brussels to empirically evaluate incentives to disclose an EPC. We find that two fundamental assumptions for the unraveling result are not confirmed in our setting: tenants value energy performance of rental property only when dwellings are of very high quality and do not appear to rationally adjust their expectations when faced with dwellings that withhold their EPC. The paper formulates specific policy advice for reforming EPC mechanisms to increase disclosure rates. |
| Keywords: | Information Unraveling, Voluntary Information Disclosure, Asymmetric |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eca:wpaper:2013/278920&r=ure |
| By: | Somarathna Chandrasekara (University of Colombo) |
| Abstract: | This study aims to examine the relationships among Personality traits, Job Satisfaction and Job performance. A sample survey was conducted with 150 government schoolteachers using a closed ended questionnaire based on Personality Traits developed by Norman and McCrae & Costa, Job Performance developed by Borman & Motowidlo?s, Task Performance developed by McAllister?s, Contextual Performance developed by Organ and Farh?s et al., and Job Satisfaction developed by Porter & Lawler, and Organ. Face to face interviews were performed. Data was analyzed using SPSS 20.0. Job satisfaction and job performance have a reciprocal significant relationship. All the personality traits significantly influence on job performance whereas the Agreeableness indicates the greatest effect on job performance. In terms of job satisfaction, Agreeableness is most influential factor, followed by Extraversion. The other three personality factors do not have effect on job satisfaction. The contribution of this study is to provide empirical support for the reciprocal effect of job performance and job satisfaction. These findings confirm the pervious studies? causal relationship between these two variables. |
| Keywords: | Big five personality traits, Job satisfaction, Job performance, Sri Lanka |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:8109638&r=ure |
| By: | Appel, F.; Balmann, A. |
| Abstract: | This paper aims to examine how path-breaking farms which dramatically increase their farm-size influence other farms in an agricultural region by using agent-based participatory experiments. Our experiments are based on the FarmAgriPoliS business management game, in which a human participant manages a farm in AgriPoliS, an agent-based model of structural change in agriculture. With these experiments we can show that the impact on other farms in the model region differs depending on the performance of the human participant. In general, economically successful fast-growing participants (path-breakers) increase regional added value. Although path-breakers have a negative effect on the average income of other farms in the region some other farms may even benefit. Whether a single farm in the region can benefit from a path-breaker depends on the distance. Moreover, even more smaller farms may survive. Although the influence decreases overall with growing distance, the functional correlation is neither linear nor exponential, but wave-like. Acknowledgement : This work was supported by the German Research Foundation (DFG): The research was conducted within the Subproject 5 of the research unit Structural change in Agriculture (SiAg) . |
| Keywords: | Farm Management |
| Date: | 2018–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:iaae18:277358&r=ure |