Second Progress Report by economic research institutes about the economic development in East Germany - abridged version
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 15,
2003
Abstract
Auch im Sommer 2003 kann die Entwicklung in der ostdeutschen Wirtschaft niemanden zufrieden stellen. Zusätzlich zu allen Diskussionen um Möglichkeiten einer Belebung der Wachstumsdynamik in ganz Deutschland stellt sich deswegen auch die Frage, wie die Politik dem Aufbau Ost neuen Schwung geben kann. Diese Frage stellt sich um so dringender, weil die finanzpolitischen Schwierigkeiten Deutschlands die Spielräume für finanziell kostspielige Programme für die neuen Länder stark einengen. Wichtige Bestandteile der Wirtschaftspolitik für Ostdeutschland waren in den letzten Jahren die spezifische Wirtschaftsförderung (insbesondere die Investitionsförderung), für die wegen ihrer Befristung wie auch wegen EU-rechtlicher Restriktionen Nachfolgelösungen gesucht werden, sowie die Aktive Arbeitsmarktpolitik, die im Zuge der allgemeinen Arbeitsmarktreformen ebenfalls auf den Prüfstand gestellt worden ist. In Anbetracht der anstehenden Entscheidungen über die weitere Strategie für den Aufbau Ost hat der Bundesminister der Finanzen die mit dem so genannten „Fortschrittsbericht“ betrauten Forschungsinstitute (DIW Berlin, IAB, IfW, IWH und ZEW) deshalb gebeten, diese beiden Politikbereiche einer näheren Analyse zu unterziehen und darauf aufbauend wirtschaftspolitische Schlussfolgerungen abzuleiten. Darüber hinaus wurden als weitere Schwerpunkte des Berichts eine regional differenzierte Analyse der Infrastrukturausstattung in den neuen Ländern, eine Untersuchung der technologischen Leistungsfähigkeit der ostdeutschen Wirtschaft und eine Analyse der finanzpolitischen Situation der ostdeutschen Länder und Gemeinden vereinbart.
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The State of the World Economy and the German Economy in Fall of 2003 - Report of the six economic research institutes
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 14,
2003
Abstract
Growth of total world output has accelerated since last spring. The factors that had dampened growth during the early months of 2003 have lapsed, economic policy continues to be stimulating and the assessment of the prospects has become more favourable. The recovery is led once again by the United States. Developments in Japan are surprisingly good and the phase of weakness in Southeast Asia has been overcome. Whereas output in the EU accession countries has continued to grow strongly, the euro area has remained mired in stagnation....
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Municipal companies in Germany: turnover, employment, fields of operation
Peter Haug
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 13,
2003
Abstract
Despite the ongoing political and scientific discussion about justification and extent of municipal economic activities, neither official statistics nor surveys of associations or research institutes provide valid data concerning the importance of local public enterprises. The IWH has carried out an analysis of different statistical sources which tries to fill the gap for municipal enterprises and yields the following results: Turnover- and employment shares of (big) companies with municipal shareholding are rather small in Germany. Nevertheless, such enterprises dominate within certain branches (e.g. public utilities) and their importance for the regional economy is particularly in Eastern Germany above-average.
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Merger Control and Competition Policy in Central East Europe in view
Johannes Stephan
ICFAI Journal of International Business Law,
2003
Abstract
This study reviews the progress made in EU accession candidates with respect to competition policy. The analysis shows that institution building and legislation is well under way and that anti-trust practise is not too lax. Due to the diversity among the accession countries under review, the study finds that the strictly rule-based framework of the EU might not represent the most favourable solution for some candidates: firstly, the small and open economies of most candidates make it particularly difficult to define the “relevant market” in competition cases. Secondly, the traditionally intense vertical integration of production in accession states calls for a reassessment of “vertical restraints”. The policy implications of this study suggest that the EU competition task force should take a rather proactive, case-by-case approach vis-à-vis its new members.
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Tracing technological change over long periods in Germany in chemicals using patent statistics.
Iciar Dominguez Lacasa, Hariolf Grupp, U. Schmoch
Scientometrics,
No. 2,
2003
Abstract
This contribution deepens the feasibility issues of building state-of-the-art patent indicators with historical patent documents available in electronic form from the German Patent Office since the introduction of the Patent Law for the German Empire in 1877. The paper is divided into two parts: a methodological discussion and a case study on the chemical sector in Germany. The development of the technology sector defined matches remarkably well with stylised facts that institutional analysis in the chemical sector have provided us with so far. Moreover, the possibility of varying the level of aggregation in the analysis of technological areas discloses empirical evidence for the path-dependent development in the chemical sector after the advent of the organic chemistry and its application in the chemical synthesis of dye stuffs. Our findings enhance institutional and historical contributions about technological change in the chemical sector and suggest new research questions for innovation studies.
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Empirical methods for analysising the risks of financial crises
Axel Brüggemann, Thomas Linne
IWH-Sonderhefte,
No. 3,
2003
Abstract
he vulnerability against financial crises of EU candidate countries and other Central and East European countries is on the agenda of the Institute for Economic Research Halle. Research concentrates on the developing of effective early warning indicators and includes a strong orientation on quantitative methods. This volume presents selected methods for the analyse of financial fragility. The finding complete the signals approach, which is used by the IWH for routine checks of the risk potential of EU candidate an other countries of the region. The four studies presented here were written by the scientific staff of the IWH and by guest researchers. Their objective is to deepen insights into selected problems of financial fragility by using alternative methods.
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The home market - precondition for export business of East German industrial enterprises
Brigitte Loose, Udo Ludwig
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 2,
2003
Abstract
This article deals with the presence of East German manufacturers in foreign product markets. The following questions are discussed: Which factories sell their products abroad? What influences the export activities? Hypotheses are built on the basis of different trade theories, such as the relative position of the enterprises in their home market, the cumulation of learning effects in production and sales, the saturation of the domestic market and others. Individual data sets from industrial surveys for 1995 and 2000 are used to reveal the relationship between the company’s technical as well as institutional characteristics and their participation in export activities. Bivariate and multivariate approaches are applied. Additionally, a sample of enterprises has been asked to assess their export activities.
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Der Exportsektor im ostdeutschen Verarbeitenden Gewerbe und seine Bedeutung für das betriebliche Wachstum - eine Auswertung von Mikrodaten der amtlichen Statistik und einer IWH-Industrieumfrage -
Brigitte Loose, Udo Ludwig
IWH Discussion Papers,
No. 169,
2003
Abstract
This paper deals with the presence of East German manufacturers in foreign product markets. The following questions are discussed: Which factories sell their products abroad? What influences the export activities? Hypotheses are built on the basis of different trade theories, such as the relative position of the enterprises in their home market, the cumulation of learning effects in production and sales, the saturation of the domestic market and others. Individual data sets from industrial surveys for 1995 and 2000 are used to reveal the relationship between the company’s technical as well as institutional characteristics and their participation in export activities. Bivariate and multivariate approaches are applied. Additionally, a sample of enterprises has been asked to assess their export activities.
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Possible effects of demographic change - An overview
Gunter Steinmann, Olaf Fuchs, Sven Tagge
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 15,
2002
Abstract
One of the more important influences shaping the future economic conditions of the highly industrialized countries is the decline and aging of their population. The article is a comprehensive survey of the impact of this development on key economic variables and the institutions of the welfare state. While the overall consequence of the aging process on productivity growth is more likely to be negative, there are also some offsetting forces like the increase in the capital intensity. The institutions of the welfare state, which are based on intergenerational transfers, will have to be reformed, in order to bring them in line with the demographic process. The prediction of a decrease in the rate of unemployment as a consequence of a declining labor force is according to our analysis not justified.
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