Industrial Organization Commons^™

The Role Of Manufacturing In A Jobs Recovery, Susan N. Houseman

External Papers and Reports

No abstract provided.

A Laplace Stochastic Frontier Model, William C. Horrace, Christopher F. Parmeter

Center for Policy Research

We propose a Laplace stochastic frontier model as an alternative to the traditional model with normal errors. An interesting feature of the Laplace model is that the distribution of inefficiency conditional on the composed error is constant for positive values of the composed error, but varies for negative values. Therefore, it may be ideally suited for analyzing industries with many forms on or close to the efficient frontier. A simulation study suggests that the model performs well relative to the normal-exponential model when the two-sided error is misspecified. A brief application to US Airlines is provided.

Number Of Firms And Price Competition, Kyle Bagwell, Gea Myoung Lee

Research Collection School Of Economics

The relationship between the number of firms and price competition is a central issue in economics. To explore this relationship, we modify Varianís (1980) model and assume that firms are privately informed about their costs of production. Allowing that the support of possible cost types may be large, we show that an increase in the number of firms induces lower (higher) prices for lower-cost (highercost) firms. We also characterize the pricing distribution as the number of firms approaches infinity, finding that the equilibrium pricing function converges to the monopoly pricing function for all but the lowest possible cost type. If …

Three Essays On Cross-Border Mergers And Acquisitions, Derrick T. Jenniges

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

This dissertation consists of three essays on cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&As). The first essay studies horizontal and vertical investments between Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, while the second essay examines how investment patterns vary by country development. The third essay estimates the effect of merger policy reform on cross-border M&A activity in Europe.

The first essay tests how well theories of horizontal and vertical foreign direct investment (FDI) explain observed patterns of cross-border M&As in OECD countries. Horizontal investment occurs when multinational firms produce in foreign countries to serve the foreign market, whereas vertical investment occurs …

Intermediate Inputs And External Economies, Haiwen Zhou

Economics Faculty Publications

Is the degree of external economies (at the industry level) higher than the degree of internal increasing returns (at the firm level)? If so, what is the exact source of this difference? In the general equilibrium model in which firms producing final goods choose the degree of specialization of their technologies, external economies arise from the usage of intermediate inputs and the existence of internal increasing returns. It is frequently assumed that increasing returns are absent at the firm level while present at the industry level. In this model, the existence of increasing returns at the firm level is necessary …

Five Facts About Value-Added Exports And Implications For Macroeconomics And Trade Research, Robert C. Johnson

Dartmouth Scholarship

Due to the rise of global supply chains, gross exports do not accurately measure the amount of value added exchanged between countries. I highlight five facts about differences between gross and value-added exports. These differences are large and growing over time, currently around 25 percent, and manufacturing trade looks more important, relative to services, in gross than value-added terms. These differences are also heterogenous across countries and bilateral partners, and changing unevenly across countries and partners over time. Taking these differences into account enables researchers to obtain better quantitative answers to important macroeconomic and trade questions. I discuss how the …

The Industrialisation Challenge For Africa: Towards A Commodities Based Industrialisation Path, Mike Morris, Judith Fessehaie

Journal of African Trade

Since the turn of the millennium many African economies have been reintegrated into the world economy on a positive note and experienced substantial economic growth. This growth has primarily been concentrated in commodity exports. The central question facing African economies is how to use economic growth to foster industrialisation and thereby facilitate general development. This paper discusses the extent to which developing backward and forward linkages to the commodity sectors can contribute to its industrialisation project, in light of the past de-industrialisation process and recent trends in global commodity markets. It then reviews the theoretical criticism to resource-based industrialisation and …

Informality And Development, Rafael La Porta, Andrei Shleifer

Dartmouth Scholarship

In developing countries, informal firms account for up to half of economic activity. They provide livelihood for billions of people. Yet their role in economic development remains controversial with some viewing informality as pent-up potential and others viewing informality as a parasitic organizational form that hinders economic growth. In this paper, we assess these perspectives. We argue that the evidence is most consistent with dual models, in which informality arises out of poverty and the informal and formal sectors are very different. It seems that informal firms have low productivity and produce low- quality products; and, consequently, they do not …

Coexistence Of Gm, Conventional And Organic Food Not Always Possible, Konstantinos Giannakas

CAFIO: Policy Research Group Policy Pagers

The coexistence of genetically modified (GM) products with their conventional and organic counterparts has been one of the most scrutinized issues surrounding the introduction of products of agricultural biotechnology into the agri-food system. Fears that the widespread adoption of GM products will drive their conventional (and, perhaps, organic) counterparts out of the market have been countered by arguments that their presence enhances the equilibrium product variety in the market. Central to the argument is, of course, the possibility of coexistence of GM, conventional and organic products with the main focus having been on farm production systems and the prospect of …

Gmos And Iprs Are Key Weapons In Fight Against Hunger, Konstantinos Giannakas

CAFIO: Policy Research Group Policy Pagers

The introduction of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) into the food system and the assignment of intellectual property rights (IPRs) for plant genetic resources are among the most notable features of the increasingly industrialized agri-food marketing system of numerous developed and developing countries around the world. IPRs have provided innovating firms with incentives to aggressively pursue improvements of crop characteristics (such as herbicide tolerance, insect and virus resistance, drought tolerance and increased nutritional value) through gene splicing techniques, and the agronomic benefits associated with the genetically modified (GM) products have resulted in their embrace by a significant number of agricultural producers …

Ad Hoc Disaster And Crop Insurance Programs May Reduce The Use Of Risk-Reducing Conservation Tillage Practices, Karina Schoengold, Ya Ying, Russell Headlee

CAFIO: Policy Research Group Policy Pagers

There is growing concern that the risks facing agricultural producers are increasing due to several factors that include the predicted effects of climate change leading to more frequent floods, droughts, and higher temperatures as well greater use of agricultural outputs for nonfood energy products.

These risks are partially managed through federal agricultural programs. Ad hoc disaster payments have frequently been used to provide financial support.

Developing, Refining, And Validating A Survey To Measure Stereotypes And Biases That Women Face In Industry, Erin D. Webb

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Almost any woman who has worked in a male dominated industry has faced a gender stereotype or bias of some type. Some of these women have even developed coping mechanisms to counteract these biases and make day-to-day interactions at work tolerable. Gathering information to reveal these stereotypes and biases can pose a distinctive challenge. Many women do not want to reveal the challenges that they have faced in their careers, and the vastness of types of challenges makes asking the correct questions very difficult. Through testing, this study has developed a valid data collection instrument that can be used to …

China At The Crossroads, Singapore Management University

Perspectives@SMU

When villagers in Wukan village (乌坎) in Southern China protested against illegal land grabs in September 2011, it highlighted a main source of tension in China: the displacement of rural Chinese by rapid urbanisation, sometimes done illegally. The Seige of Wukan was a case in point, where local Communist Party officials had sold communally held farmland

Uganda’S Cotton And Textile Sectors: Current Production Challenges, Motivations And Effects On Development, Daniel Geiser Chell

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Current policies promote value addition industries and increased cotton yields. On the ground, however, cotton production and textile industries continue to lag behind previous rates of production. The study therefore sought to understand the conditions contributing to the current economic climate of the cotton industry. Once context was established, the researcher explored factors both promoting and discouraging cotton cultivation. Finally, the research explores the developmental consequences of increasing cotton and textile production in Uganda. In order to meet the aforementioned objectives, the researcher carried out a value chain analysis of the cotton and textile industry, taking note of the policies …

Contract Enforcement: A Political Economy Model Of Legal Development, Fali Huang

Research Collection School Of Economics

In an effort to understand why the relative usage of relational and legal contracts differs across societies, this article builds a political economy model of legal development where legal quality of contract enforcement is a costly public good. It finds that legal investment tends to be too small under elite rule but too large under majority rule in comparison with the socially optimal level. Furthermore, elite rule, low legal quality, and high-income inequality may form a self-perpetuating circle that hinders economic development. In contrast to the conventional view, this article suggests that the often-observed association between heavy reliance on relational …

Michigan's Auto Workers: Tracking Their Transition During Significant Industry Restructuring, Randall W. Eberts

Conference Papers

No abstract provided.

Michigan's Displaced Auto Workers: Using Administrative Data To Track Their Transition During Significant Industry Restructuring, Randall W. Eberts

Conference Papers

No abstract provided.

An Econometric Analysis On Pricing And Market Structure In The U.S. Airline Industry, Jiajun Liang

The Macalester Review

This paper examines the relationship between market power and airfares in the U.S. aviation industry. I performed Hausman-Taylor and random effects estimation techniques on quarterly data of the top one thousand most heavily traveled city pairs from 2009 to 2012. Overall, the regression results may be interpreted in such way that while higher concentration at a route level increases ticket prices, it nonetheless reduces average airfare at the airport level. For policy implications, it may suggest that higher market concentration has at least some merits to the consumers, most likely caused by the cost saving due to economic use of …

Defense, U.S. Department Of, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

Provides an overview of U.S. Department of Defense activities in the western U.S. including the military's increasing emphasis on Asia-Pacific strategic trends and developments.

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, U.S., Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

Provides a historical overview and contemporary analysis of the energy policymaking role played by the Energy Department's Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). FERC responsibilities include regulating the prices and interstate transmission of electricity, natural gas, and oil. Its responsibilities also include reviewing proposals to build and locate natural gas terminals, interstate natural gas pipelines, licensing hydropower projects, and regulating relevant mergers and securities acquisitions in these areas.