Offshoring and company characteristics: some evidence from the analysis of Spanish firm data

This article investigates firm characteristics associated with the probability of relocating activities in a foreign country. Using manufacturing firms’ micro data for the 1999-2005 period, we find evidence that cost-cutting objectives are the main determinants for offshoring production. The analysis reveals that firms that are larger and have higher productivity, more research and development activity and greater human capital intensity are more likely to relocate activity abroad. Thus, ‘the best’ firms self-select to offshoring activities. We note the special prominence of foreign firms among those that engage in offshoring. Our results show that self-selection of ‘the best’ firms are much more significant in foreign firms.Offshoring determinants, best firms, firm characteristics, foreign firms

Term structure of interest rate. european financial integration.

In this paper we estimate, analyze and compare the term structures of interest rate in six different countries, during the period 1992-2004. We apply Nelson and Siegel model to obtain them with a weekly frequency. Four European Monetary Union countries, Spain, France, Germany and Italy are included. UK is also included as a European country, but not integrated in the Monetary Union. Finally US completes the analysis. The goal is to determine the differences in the shape of curves between these countries. Likewise, we can determinate the most usual term structure shapes that appear in every country.Term structure of interest rate, parsimonious models, level parameter, slope parameter, European interest rate.

Optimal Inverse Beta (3,3) Transformation in Kernel Density Estimation

A double transformation kernel density estimator that is suitable for heavy-tailed distributions is presented. Using a double transformation, an asymptotically optimal bandwidth parameter can be calculated when minimizing the expression of the asymptotic mean integrated squared error of the transformed variable. Simulation results are presented showing that this approach performs better than existing alternatives. An application to insurance claim cost data is included

Prediction of the economic cost of individual long-term care in the Spanish population

Pensions together with savings and investments during active life are key elements of retirement planning. Motivation for personal choices about the standard of living, bequest and the replacement ratio of pen- sion with respect to last salary income must be considered. This research contributes to the financial planning by helping to quantify long-term care economic needs. We estimate life expectancy from retirement age onwards. The economic cost of care per unit of service is linked to the expected time of needed care and the intensity of required services. The expected individual cost of long-term care from an onset of dependence is estimated separately for men and women. Assumptions on the mor- tality of the dependent people compared to the general population are introduced. Parameters defining eligibility for various forms of coverage by the universal public social care of the welfare system are addressed. The impact of the intensity of social services on individual predictions is assessed, and a partial coverage by standard private insurance products is also explored. Data were collected by the Spanish Institute of Statis- tics in two surveys conducted on the general Spanish population in 1999 and in 2008. Official mortality records and life table trends were used to create realistic scenarios for longevity. We find empirical evidence that the public long-term care system in Spain effectively mitigates the risk of incurring huge lifetime costs. We also find that the most vulnerable cate- gories are citizens with moderate disabilities that do not qualify to obtain public social care support. In the Spanish case, the trends between 1999 and 2008 need to be further explored.JEL classification:

On the link between credibility and frequency premium

Ce papier remet en question l'hypothèse d'équidistribution des effets aléatoires dans un modèle de risque fréquence. Deux modèles sont présentés, qui utilisent des liens paramétriques et non paramétriques entre la variance de l'effet aléatoire et le risque fréquence. Ils sont estimés sur un portefeuille de contrats espagnols d'assurance automobile, pour lesquels le lien précité est décroissant. Des conclusions en sont tirées pour la crédibilité et les coefficients bonus-malus.Estimateurs à noyaux;Processus gamma

Prediction of the economic cost of individual long-term care in the Spanish population

Pensions together with savings and investments during active life are key elements of retirement planning. Motivation for personal choices about the standard of living, bequest and the replacement ratio of pension with respect to last salary income must be considered. This research contributes to the financial planning by helping to quantify long-term care economic needs. We estimate life expectancy from retirement age onwards. The economic cost of care per unit of service is linked to the expected time of needed care and the intensity of required services. The expected individual cost of long-term care from an onset of dependence is estimated separately for men and women. Assumptions on the mortality of the dependent people compared to the general population are introduced. Parameters defining eligibility for various forms of coverage by the universal public social care of the welfare system are addressed. The impact of the intensity of social services on individual predictions is assessed, and a partial coverage by standard private insurance products is also explored. Data were collected by the Spanish Institute of Statistics in two surveys conducted on the general Spanish population in 1999 and in 2008. Official mortality records and life table trends were used to create realistic scenarios for longevity. We find empirical evidence that the public long-term care system in Spain effectively mitigates the risk of incurring huge lifetime costs. We also find that the most vulnerable categories are citizens with moderate disabilities that do not qualify to obtain public social care support. In the Spanish case, the trends between 1999 and 2008 need to be further explored.

"Factors affecting hospital admission and recovery stay duration of in-patient motor victims in Spain"

Hospital expenses are a major cost driver of healthcare systems in Europe, with motor injuries being the leading mechanism of hospitalizations. This paper investigates the injury characteristics which explain the hospitalization of victims of traffic accidents that took place in Spain. Using a motor insurance database with 16,081 observations a generalized Tobit regression model is applied to analyse the factors that influence both the likelihood of being admitted to hospital after a motor collision and the length of hospital stay in the event of admission. The consistency of Tobit estimates relies on the normality of perturbation terms. Here a semi-parametric regression model was fitted to test the consistency of estimates, concluding that a normal distribution of errors cannot be rejected. Among other results, it was found that older men with fractures and injuries located in the head and lower torso are more likely to be hospitalized after the collision, and that they also have a longer expected length of hospital recovery stay.Body injuries, Heckit estimator, semi-parametric estimator, Hausman test JEL classification:C24, I10

Optimal inverse Beta(3,3) transformation in kernel density estimation

A double transformation kernel density estimator that is suitable for heavy-tailed distributions is presented. Using a double transformation, an asymptotically optimal bandwidth parameter can be calculated when minimizing the expression of the asymptotic mean integrated squared error of the transformed variable. Simulation results are presented showing that this approach performs better than existing alternatives. An application to insurance claim cost data is included

Frequency and Severity Dependence in the Collective Risk Model: An Approach Based on Sarmanov Distribution

In actuarial mathematics, the claims of an insurance portfolio are often modeled using the collective risk model, which consists of a random number of claims of independent, identically distributed (i.i.d.) random variables (r.v.s) that represent cost per claim. To facilitate computations, there is a classical assumption of independence between the random number of such random variables (i.e., the claims frequency) and the random variables themselves (i.e., the claim severities). However, recent studies showed that, in practice, this assumption does not always hold, hence, introducing dependence in the collective model becomes a necessity. In this sense, one trend consists of assuming dependence between the number of claims and their average severity (...

FOREIGN MANUFACTURING INVESTMENT - DO AGGLOMERATION ECONOMIES MATTER?

This paper examines the role that agglomeration economies play as location determinants in manufacturing foreign direct investment, with special emphasis on inter-industry heterogeneity. The analysis reveals that agglomeration economies are significant determinants of the regional distribution of manufacturing FDI, and that the nature and importance of locational determinants vary according to the specific needs of each industry. In short manufacturing agglomeration and location economies are the most important location factors, especially in industries with high level of linkages and in R&D intensive sectors