Capital Stock Approximation using Firm Level Panel Data: A Modified Perpetual Inventory Approach
Steffen Müller
Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik,
No. 4,
2008
Abstract
Many recent studies exploring conditional factor demand or factor substitution issues use firm level panel data. A considerable number of establishment panels contains no direct information on the capital input, necessary for production or cost function estimation. Incorrect measurement of capital leads to biased estimates and casts doubt on any inference on output elasticities or input substitution properties. The perpetual inventory approach, commonly used for long panels, is a method that attenuates these problems. In this paper a modified perpetual inventory approach is proposed. This method provides more reliable measures for capital input when short firm panels are used and no direct information on capital input is available. The empirical results based on a replication study of Addison et al. (2006) support the conclusion that modified perpetual inventory is superior to previous attempts in particular when fixed effects estimation techniques are used. The method thus makes a considerable number of recently established firm panels accessible to more sophisticated production function or factor demand analyses.
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Implementation of Competition Law in Developing and Transition Countries. Theoretical and Empirical Considerations
Franz Kronthaler
Schriften des IWH,
No. 26,
2007
Abstract
The success of free market economies over the last 200 years supports the notion that competition increases individual and social wealth. Developing countries that have undergone the necessary reforms today are amongst the most driving “emerging” economies in the world.
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Getting out of the Ivory Tower - New Perspectives on the Entrepreneurial University
Jutta Günther, Kerstin Wagner
Discussion Papers on Entrepreneurship and Innovation,
No. 2,
2007
Abstract
Based on theoretical considerations about the “third mission” of universities and the discussion of the nature of different university-industry relations, we conclude that the entrepreneurial university is a manifold institution with direct ways to transfer technology from academia to industry as well as indirect connections to industry via entrepreneurship education and training. While existing literature usually deals with one or another linking mechanism separately, our central hypothesises is that direct and indirect mechanisms should be interrelated and mutually complementary. We emphasize the importance of a more holistic view and empirically investigate the scope and interrelatedness of entrepreneurship education and direct technology transfer mechanisms at German universities. We find a variety of activities in both fields and evidence for an identification of HEI with the mission of knowledge commercialisation. Furthermore, it shows that the HEIs’ technology transfer facilities and the entrepreneurship education providers co-operate in support of the creation of spin-offs and innovative start-ups.
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The Role of the Human Capital and Managerial Skills in Explaining the Productivity Gaps between East and West
Wolfgang Steffen, Johannes Stephan
IWH Discussion Papers,
No. 11,
2007
Abstract
This paper assess determinants of productivity gaps between firms in the European transition countries and regions and firms in West Germany. The analysis is conducted at the firm level by use of a unique database constructed by field work. The determinants tested in a simple econometric regression model are focussed upon the issue of human capital and modern market-oriented management. The results are novel in as much as a solution was established for the puzzling results in related research with respect to a comparison of formal qualification between East and West. Furthermore, the analysis was able to establish that the kind of human capital and expertise mostly needed in the post-socialist firms are related to the particular requirements of a competitive marketbased economic environment. Finally, the analysis also finds empirical support for the role of capital deepening in productivity catch-up, as well as the case that the gaps in labour productivity are most importantly rooted in a more labour-intense production, which does not give rise to a competitive disadvantage.
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Inflation and relative price variability in the euro area: evidence from a panel threshold model
Dieter Nautz, Juliane Scharff
Bundesbank Discussion Paper, No. 14/2006,
2006
Abstract
In recent macroeconomic theory, relative price variability (RPV) generates the
central distortions of inflation. This paper provides first evidence on the empirical
relation between inflation and RPV in the euro area focusing on threshold effects
of inflation. We find that expected inflation significantly increases RPV if inflation
is either very low (below -1.38% p.a.) or very high (above 5.94% p.a.). In the
intermediate regime, however, expected inflation has no distorting effects which
supports price stability as an outcome of optimal monetary policy.
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Interregional Support Policy for East German Regions
Martin T. W. Rosenfeld
German Annual of Spatial Research and Policy,
2006
Abstract
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Microeconometric Evaluation of Selected ESF-funded ALMP-Programmes
Eva Reinowski, Birgit Schultz
IWH Discussion Papers,
No. 17,
2006
Abstract
The study evaluates different ESF-funded labour market programmes by comparing the labour market status at different points in time after the treatment. In order to solve the selection problem we employ a standard matching algorithm with a multi-dimensional distance measure. The effects of the analyzed programmes (wage subsidies, start-up subsidies and qualification measures for recipients of social welfare) are very heterogeneous. It can be observed that the direct integration into the regular labour market provides an advantage for the supported individuals. Its lasting effects, however, strongly depend on the group of persons being supported, the type of treatment and the employers’ financial share.
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Industry Level Technology Gaps and Complementary Knowledge Stocks as Determinants of Intra-MNC Knowledge Flows
Björn Jindra, Johannes Stephan
East-West Journal of Economics and Business,
1 & 2
2005
Abstract
Pursuing a subsidiary level analysis, we this paper tests the ‘technology gap’ hypothesis in the context of intra-MNC knowledge flows. Furthermore, it introduces complementary knowledge stocks into the concept of absorptive capacity. A set of hypotheses is tested in sample 434 foreign subsidiaries based in Central and East Europe. We find partial support for the ‘technology gap’ hypothesis applied at industry level. Furthermore, subsidiaries’ complementary knowledge stocks increase the probability for corresponding knowledge inflows from the foreign parent.
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Financial Openness and Business Cycle Volatility
Claudia M. Buch, Jörg Döpke, C. Pierdzioch
Journal of International Money and Finance,
No. 5,
2005
Abstract
This paper discusses whether the integration of international financial markets affects business cycle volatility. In the framework of a new open economy macro-model, we show that the link between financial openness and business cycle volatility depends on the nature of the underlying shock. Empirical evidence supports this conclusion. Our results also show that the link between business cycle volatility and financial openness has not been stable over time.
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Negotiated Third Party Access - an Industrial Organisation Perspective
Christian Growitsch, Thomas Wein
European Journal of Law and Economics,
2005
Abstract
In the course of the liberalization of European energy markets, the German government opted – diverging from all other European countries – for Negotiated Third-Party Access. In this article we analyze if, theoretically, this institutional regime can be superior to regulation. We review empirically whether certain aspects of the actual implementation, in particular publication of the network access charges for each network supplier, facilitated or inhibited competition. In the first place we reconsider previous research, showing that NTPA can – under certain conditions – be economically effective. Our empirical analysis shows that the duty of publishing access charges supported market transparency and imposed a regulatory threat, particularly to suppliers with significantly above-average charges. On the other hand observable price adjustments over time serve as an indicator of tacit collusion. Although the expensive suppliers cut their prices, the cheaper ones raised theirs.
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