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on Efficiency and Productivity |
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Issue of 2021‒10‒25
nine papers chosen by |
| By: | Khanam, Bilkis R. |
| Keywords: | Public Economics |
| Date: | 2021–10–14 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ctrf31:314713&r= |
| By: | Jean-Charles Bricongne; Samuel Delpeuch; Margarita Lopez Forero |
| Abstract: | Based on French firm-level data over around 15 years we evaluate the contribution of the micro-level profit shifting –through tax haven foreign direct investments to the aggregate productivity slowdown measured in France. We show that firm measured productivity in France declines over the immediate years following the establishment in a tax haven, with an average estimated drop by 3.5% in labor apparent productivity. We argue that this productivity decline, following a presence in a tax haven, is most likely explained by multinationals’ tax optimization, where domestic productivity is underestimated as profits are not recorded anymore in the home country. The fall in productivity is especially strong for firms that are intensive in intangible capital and is equivalent to 4.1% (versus 2.7% for low intangible intensive firms), reflecting the fact that these types of assets are more easily shifted across countries and facilitate tax planning. Our results additionally suggest that the mismeasurement has strong dynamic effects, as the decline becomes more important the longer the firm remains in a tax haven. Finally, given these firms’ weight in the economy, our results imply an 8% loss at the aggregate in terms of the level of the labor productivity throughout the whole sample period, which is equivalent to an annual loss of 9.7% in terms of the aggregate annual labor productivity growth. |
| Keywords: | Tax Havens, Profit shifting FDI, Productivity slowdown, Productivity mismeasurement, Intangible capital |
| JEL: | D33 F23 H26 H87 O47 |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bfr:banfra:835&r= |
| By: | Marijn A. Bolhuis; Swapnika R. Rachapalli; Diego Restuccia |
| Abstract: | We exploit substantial variation in land-market institutions across Indian states and detailed micro household-level panel data to assess the effect of distortions in land rental markets on agricultural productivity. We provide empirical evidence that states with more rental-market activity feature less misallocation and reallocate land more efficiently over time. We develop a model of heterogeneous farms and land rentals to estimate land-market distortions in each state. Land rentals have substantial positive effects on agricultural productivity: an efficient reallocation of land increases agricultural productivity by 38 percent on average and by more than 50 percent in states with highly distorted rental markets. Both farm and state-level land market distortions are quantitatively important, with state-level wedges accounting for a significant fraction of rental market participation differences across states. Land market distortions contribute about one-third to the large differences in agricultural total factor productivity across Indian states. |
| JEL: | O11 O13 O4 |
| Date: | 2021–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:29363&r= |
| By: | Nicholas Bloom; Scott Ohlmacher; Cristina Tello-Trillo; Melanie Wallskog |
| Abstract: | Using confidential Census matched employer-employee earnings data we find that employees at more productive firms, and firms with more structured management practices, have substantially higher pay, both on average and across every percentile of the pay distribution. This pay-performance relationship is particularly strong amongst higher paid employees, with a doubling of firm productivity associated with 11% more pay for the highest-paid employee (likely the CEO) compared to 4.7% for the median worker. This pay-performance link holds in public and private firms, although it is almost twice as strong in public firms for the highest-paid employees. Top pay volatility is also strongly related to productivity and structured management, suggesting this performance-pay relationship arises from more aggressive monitoring and incentive practices for top earners. |
| Keywords: | inequality, productivity, CEO pay |
| JEL: | J24 J30 J31 |
| Date: | 2021–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cen:wpaper:21-31&r= |
| By: | Sambucci, Olena; Sumner, Daniel A. |
| Keywords: | Labor and Human Capital, Productivity Analysis, Health Economics and Policy |
| Date: | 2021–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea21:314083&r= |
| By: | Daunfeldt, Sven-Olov (Institute of Retail Economics (Handelns Forskningsinstitut)); Mihaescu, Oana (Institute of Retail Economics (Handelns Forskningsinstitut)); Rudholm, Niklas (Institute of Retail Economics (Handelns Forskningsinstitut)) |
| Abstract: | : Business improvement districts (BIDs) have emerged as possible solutions for the revitalization of urban areas characterized by economic decline. Using a difference-in differences model, we investigate the effects of a voluntary Swedish BID programme in five cities on firm performance, urban safety, and place attractiveness – both within and outside the BID. We find that the BID programme increased labour productivity for incumbent firms within the BID by 7.62%, mainly through an increase in revenues. However, the positive effect of the BID programme on firm performance is largely transitory, decreasing sharply during the third year and then becoming insignificant. We find no statistically significant impacts on firm performance outside the geographical boundaries of the BIDs. The results also suggest that fewer crimes were committed in the BIDs, as the estimates for all years are negative, though they are significant only for the fourth year after BID implementation. Finally, we detect no statistically significant effects of the BID programme on property values either within or outside the designated BIDs. |
| Keywords: | : Business improvement district; public–private partnerships; firm performance; labour productivity; property values; crime; difference-in-differences |
| JEL: | H44 L11 L25 R11 R12 |
| Date: | 2021–10–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:hfiwps:0024&r= |
| By: | Haque, Samiul; Abedin, Naveen |
| Keywords: | International Development, Production Economics, Agricultural Finance |
| Date: | 2021–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea21:313947&r= |
| By: | Ananthan Nambiar; Tobias Rubel; James McCaull; Jon deVries; Mark Bedau |
| Abstract: | It is widely assumed that in our lifetimes the products available in the global economy have become more diverse. This assumption is difficult to investigate directly, however, because it is difficult to collect the necessary data about every product in an economy each year. We solve this problem by mining publicly available textual descriptions of the products of every large US firms each year from 1997 to 2017. Although many aspects of economic productivity have been steadily rising during this period, our text-based measurements show that the diversity of the products of at least large US firms has steadily declined. This downward trend is visible using a variety of product diversity metrics, including some that depend on a measurement of the similarity of the products of every single pair of firms. The current state of the art in comprehensive and detailed firm-similarity measurements is a Boolean word vector model due to Hoberg and Phillips. We measure diversity using firm-similarities from this Boolean model and two more sophisticated variants, and we consistently observe a significant dropping trend in product diversity. These results make it possible to frame and start to test specific hypotheses for explaining the dropping product diversity trend. |
| Date: | 2021–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2110.08367&r= |
| By: | Kappes, Alex; Marsh, Thomas L. |
| Keywords: | Production Economics, Consumer/Household Economics, International Development |
| Date: | 2021–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea21:314049&r= |