5,794 research outputs found

    The shape of aggregate production functions: evidence from estimates of the World Technology Frontier

    Get PDF
    The article provides multifaceted evidence on the shape of the aggregate country-level production function, derived from the World Technology Frontier, estimated on the basis of annual data on inputs and output in 19 highly developed OECD countries in the period 1970–2004. A comparison of its estimates based on Data Envelopment Analysis and Bayesian Stochastic Frontier Analysis uncovers a number of significant discrepancies between the nonparametric estimates of the frontier and the Cobb–Douglas and translog production functions in terms of implied efficiency levels, partial elasticities, and returns-to-scale properties. Furthermore, the two latter characteristics as well as elasticities of substitution are found to differ markedly across countries and time, providing strong evidence against the constant-returns-to-scale (CRS) Cobb–Douglas specification, frequently used in related literature. We also find notable departures from perfect substitutability between unskilled and skilled labor, consistent with the hypotheses of skill-biased technical change and capital–skill complementarity. In the Appendix, as a corollary from our results, we have also conducted a series of development accounting and growth accounting exercises.world technology frontier, aggregate production function, Data Envelopment Analysis, Stochastic Frontier Analysis, partial elasticity, returns to scale, substitutability

    Incorporating Environmental Impacts in the Measurement of Agricultural Productivity Growth

    Get PDF
    Agricultural production is known to have environmental impacts, both adverse and beneficial, and it is desirable to incorporate at least some of these impacts in an environmentally sensitive productivity index. In this paper, we construct indicators of water contamination from the use of agricultural chemicals. These environmental indicators are merged with data on marketed outputs and purchased inputs to form a state-by-year panel of relative levels of outputs and inputs, including environmental impacts. We do not have prices for these undesirable by products, since they are not marketed. Consequently, we calculate a series of Malmquist productivity indexes, which do not require price information. Our benchmark scenario is a conventional Malmquist productivity index based on marketed outputs and purchased inputs only. Our comparison scenarios consist of environmentally sensitive Malmquist productivity indexes that include indicators of risk to human health and to aquatic life from chronic exposure to pesticides. In addition, we derive a set of virtual prices of the undesirable by-products that can be used to calculate an environmentally sensitive Fisher index of productivity change.environmental impacts, productivity growth, Environmental Economics and Policy,

    Efficiency analysis of producers’ organizations (Case of South Eastern and Central planning regions of Bulgaria)

    Get PDF
    The main aim of this paper is to compare two alternative methods for estimating frontier functions and measuring efficiency in production. The application of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) to the same data panel provides insights in estimating technical efficiency of producers’ organizations in selected regions in Bulgaria.DEA, SFA, technical efficiency, frontier production, farm efficiency, Community/Rural/Urban Development, International Development, C14, C23, C51, C61, C67, D24,

    Energy and the State of Nations

    Get PDF
    The mathematical conditions for the existence of macroeconomic production functions that are state functions of the economic system are pointed out. The output elasticities and the elasticities of substitution of energy-dependent Cobb-Douglas, CES and LinEx production functions are calculated. The output elasticities, which measure the productive powers of production factors and whose numerical values have been obtained for Germany, Japan, and the USA, are for energy much larger and for labor much smaller than the cost shares of these factors. Energy and its conversion into physical work accounts for most of the growth that mainstream economics attributes to “technological progress” and related concepts. It decisively determines the economic state of nations. Consequences for automation and globalization and perspectives on growth are discussed.energy; economic growth; macroeconomic production functions; output elasticities

    CAN GM-TECHNOLOGIES HELP AFRICAN SMALLHOLDERS? THE IMPACT OF BT COTTON IN THE MAKHATHINI FLATS OF KWAZULU-NATAL

    Get PDF
    Analysis of a survey of the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 seasons for the same 100 smallholders in the Makhathini Flats region of KwaZulu-Natal shows that Bt cotton has performed better than other varieties. Having two years of data for the same farmers allows innate efficiency differences, due to factors such as farm size, to be separated from the effects of the new technology, which is not normally possible. Farmers who adopted Bt cotton in 1999-2000 benefited according to all the measures used. Higher yields and lower chemical costs outweighed higher seed costs, giving higher gross margins. These measures showed negative benefits in 1998-99, which conflicts with continued adoption, but stochastic efficiency frontier estimation, which takes account of the labor saved, showed that adopters averaged 88% efficiency, as compared with 66% for the non-adopters. In 1999/2000, when late rains lowered yields, the gap widened to 74% for adopters and 48% for non-adopters.KwaZulu-Natal, Bt cotton, Stochastic Frontiers, Efficiency, Crop Production/Industries, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

    Induced Technological Change under Technology Competition

    Get PDF
    We develop a partial one-sector model with capital, natural resources, and labor as production factors, and endogenous technological change through research. Production exhibits increasing returns to scale. We compare the response of output and resource use to a change in resource prices with and without induced technological change (ITC). It is shown that induced technological change is insignificant in reducing resource use when there is one representative technology and output demand is inelastic to prices. In contrast, substantial gains from ITC appear when we allow for two competing technologies that can be employed for production, while these technologies are good substitutes. Also, in case of two technologies, conditions are specified under which multiple balanced growth paths exist, and it is shown that because of ITC, a temporary resource tax can lock out the economy from a resource intensive path and lock in to a resource extensive path.Induced technological change, environmental taxes, partial equilibrium

    FACTOR DEMANDS OF LOUISIANA RICE PRODUCERS: AN ECONOMETRIC INVESTIGATION

    Get PDF
    A Diewert-flexible (dual) cost function was used to derive a system of conditional factor demand equations for Louisiana rice producers. Generalized Leontief cost and factor share equations were fitted for the 1955-87 period using Zellner's SURE system estimation procedure. The Aitken parameter estimates reveal that: (1) the optimal input mix of rice farmers varies with production scale, (2) the factor-augmenting technical change is labor and chemical saving but seed using, (3) pairwise input substitutions are limited, and (4) factor demands are own-price inelastic. An implication is that Louisiana rice farmers will not appreciably alter their factor utilizations when relative input prices change.Demand and Price Analysis,

    Greenhouse gas emissions and the productivity growth of electricity generators

    Get PDF
    This paper analyses electricity generation in four Australian states and the Northern Territory in the late 1990s It finds that productivity growth estimates for electricity generators can change significantly when allowance is made for greenhouse gas emissions. Using an innovative analytical technique for incorporating environmental impacts in productivity estimates, it shows that productivity growth is overestimated when emission intensity is rising and underestimated when emission intensity is falling. This is because emissions are undesirable and so if they fall (grow) per unit of output then this will tend to increase (decrease) estimated productivity.greenhouse gas emissions - productivity growth - electricity - abatement

    Privatization in a Small Open Economy with Imperfect Competition

    Get PDF
    We look at privatization in a general equilibrium model of a small, tariff-distorted, open economy. There is a differentiated good produced by both private and public sector enterprises. A reduction in government production in order to cut losses from such production raises the returns to capital and increases the tariff revenue, which are welfare improving. However, privatization also leads to lower wages and possibly fewer private brands. This lowers workers’ welfare, which may make privatization politically infeasible. Privatization can improve workers’ welfare with complementary reforms, e.g., attracting foreign investment or trade liberalization.public sector enterprise; privatization; foreign investment; trade liberalization; monopolistic competition

    APPLICATIONS OF DUAL THEORY IN FISHERIES: A SURVEY

    Get PDF
    This paper surveys empirical studies that utilize the theory of the firm and dual theory to reveal economic and technological conditions of fish harvesting firms. The dual approach is highly suitable for revealing disaggregated structures in fishing processes that consist of several inputs and outputs. Building on the functional forms of cost, profit, or revenue functions, the dual approach has improved our understanding of technological production conditions based on data at firm level. This is done by addressing a variety of different technological issues for multispecies harvesting firms, such as transformation between species, substitution between fishing inputs, economies of scope and scale, industrial organization, etc. Moreover, the approach has been useful as a means of providing information on public management of resource exploitation by dealing with various regulatory regimes; i.e., input management, output management, and prospects for future regulation. The purpose of this paper is to review theoretical issues and empirical results with respect to fishing gear and regulatory regimes.Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,
    • …
    corecore