Preferential Trade Agreements and Productivity: Evidence from Peru

This paper analyzes the impact of reducing output tariffs (i.e., domestic tariffs on import of final goods) and input tariffs (i.e., domestic tariffs on imports of intermediate goods) on total factor productivity growth of Peruvian manufacturing firms. Peru’s annual survey of manufacturing data from 2003–2017 is used to explore the reduction of tariffs during three preferential trade agreements: United States, China, and the European Union. Lower output tari˙s could decrease productivity by reducing firm’s market share or could increase productivity by inducing tougher import competition, while cheaper imported inputs can raise productivity via learning, variety, and quality effects. The results show that a decrease in output tariffs decreases Peruvian firms’ productivity growth for non-exporters (i.e., domestic firms producing goods that are also imported) while increasing productivity growth for exporters (i.e., domestic firms producing export goods). In contrast, a reduction in input tariffs increases firm productivity for all firms

The Impact of Obesity on Wages: the Role of Personal Interactions and Job Selection

We estimate the effects of obesity on wages accounting for the workers' sorting into jobs requiring different levels of personal interactions in the workplace. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 combined with detailed information about jobs from O*Net, we find a wage penalty for obese white women. This penalty is higher in jobs that require a high level of personal interactions. Accounting for job selection does not significantly change the estimated wage penalty

Effectiveness of an intervention for improving drug prescription in primary care patients with multimorbidity and polypharmacy:Study protocol of a cluster randomized clinical trial (Multi-PAP project)

This study was funded by the Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias ISCIII (Grant Numbers PI15/00276, PI15/00572, PI15/00996), REDISSEC (Project Numbers RD12/0001/0012, RD16/0001/0005), and the European Regional Development Fund ("A way to build Europe").Background: Multimorbidity is associated with negative effects both on people's health and on healthcare systems. A key problem linked to multimorbidity is polypharmacy, which in turn is associated with increased risk of partly preventable adverse effects, including mortality. The Ariadne principles describe a model of care based on a thorough assessment of diseases, treatments (and potential interactions), clinical status, context and preferences of patients with multimorbidity, with the aim of prioritizing and sharing realistic treatment goals that guide an individualized management. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a complex intervention that implements the Ariadne principles in a population of young-old patients with multimorbidity and polypharmacy. The intervention seeks to improve the appropriateness of prescribing in primary care (PC), as measured by the medication appropriateness index (MAI) score at 6 and 12months, as compared with usual care. Methods/Design: Design:pragmatic cluster randomized clinical trial. Unit of randomization: family physician (FP). Unit of analysis: patient. Scope: PC health centres in three autonomous communities: Aragon, Madrid, and Andalusia (Spain). Population: patients aged 65-74years with multimorbidity (≥3 chronic diseases) and polypharmacy (≥5 drugs prescribed in ≥3months). Sample size: n=400 (200 per study arm). Intervention: complex intervention based on the implementation of the Ariadne principles with two components: (1) FP training and (2) FP-patient interview. Outcomes: MAI score, health services use, quality of life (Euroqol 5D-5L), pharmacotherapy and adherence to treatment (Morisky-Green, Haynes-Sackett), and clinical and socio-demographic variables. Statistical analysis: primary outcome is the difference in MAI score between T0 and T1 and corresponding 95% confidence interval. Adjustment for confounding factors will be performed by multilevel analysis. All analyses will be carried out in accordance with the intention-to-treat principle. Discussion: It is essential to provide evidence concerning interventions on PC patients with polypharmacy and multimorbidity, conducted in the context of routine clinical practice, and involving young-old patients with significant potential for preventing negative health outcomes. Trial registration: Clinicaltrials.gov, NCT02866799Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Barreras comerciales y su impacto en las exportaciones peruanas (1992-2002)

El presente trabajo determina, con diversas especificaciones y métodos de estimación, el impacto de las barreras comerciales (arancelarias, no arancelarias y los obstáculos técnicos) impuestas por los principales países de destino de las exportaciones peruanas sobre el valor de estas para el periodo 1992-2002. Los resultados del análisis de la información y estimaciones realizadas indican, por un lado, que los aranceles Nación Más Favorecida (NMF) y Sistema Generalizado de Preferencias (SGP) de los principales socios comerciales son relativamente bajos y cercanos a cero. Contrariamente, el número total y el promedio por partida arancelaria de exportación de las Barreras Comerciales No Arancelarias (BNA), con predominancia de los Obstáculos Técnicos al Comercio (OTC), son relativamente altos. De otro lado, a pesar de las debilidades y limitaciones de la información y sesgos de los estimadores originados por errores de omisión de variables, los impactos negativos estimados de las BNA y los OTC sobre las exportaciones parecen ser «fuertes» (robust) ante las diversas especificaciones usadas. Estos resultados sugieren que las negociaciones y acuerdos comerciales en los que el Perú participa pueden no tener los impactos positivos significativos que de ellos se esperan a menos que se reduzcan o eliminen las BNA

Barreras comerciales y su impacto en las exportaciones peruanas (1992-2002)

Using a straightforward and diverse methodology, this paper assesses and estimates the trade barriers impact on exports from the Peruvian economy. The results of the analysis indicate that Most Favored Nation (MFN) and Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) tariffs rates imposed by developed countries to Peruvian exports are relatively low and close to zero. Conversely, the number of Non-Tariff Barriers (NTB) and the average number of NTBs per export tariff line, specially the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), are relatively high. This difference produces a higher estimation of the export impact of the NTBs. An implication of these results is that the new wave of regional preferential trade agreements among developed and developing countries (which face similar trade barriers structure as the Peruvian case) may not have meaningful effects on trade flows unless it is accompanied by substantial reductions in the number of NTBs per export tariff line.Non-Tariff Barriers (NTB), Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), tariffs.

Do Cheeseburger Bills Work? Effects of Tort Reform for Fast Food

After highly publicized lawsuits against McDonald’s in 2002, 26 states adopted commonsense consumption acts (CCAs)—also known as cheeseburger bills—that greatly limit fast-food companies’ liability for weight-related harms. We provide the first evidence of the effects of CCAs using plausibly exogenous variation in the timing of CCA adoption across states. In two-way fixed-effects models, we find that CCAs significantly increased self-reports of attempts to lose weight and consumption of fruits and vegetables among heavy individuals. We also find some evidence that CCAs increased employment in the fast-food industry. Finally, we find that CCAs significantly increased the number of company-owned McDonald’s restaurants and decreased the number of franchisee-owned McDonald’s restaurants in a state. Overall, our results provide novel evidence supporting a key prediction of tort reform—that it should induce individuals to take more care—and show that industry-specific tort reforms can have meaningful effects on market outcomes