Econometric Analysis of the Effects of Subsidies on Farm Production in Case of Endogenous Input Quantities

The effect of subsidies on farm production has been a major topic in agricultural economics for several decades. We present a new approach for analyzing the effects of different types of coupled and decoupled subsidies on farm production with econometric methods. In contrast to most previous studies, our approach is entirely based on a theoretical microeconomic model, explicitly allows subsidies to have an impact on input use, and takes linkages between the farm and the farm household into account.Agricultural and Food Policy, Productivity Analysis,

Econometric Analysis of the Effects of Subsidies on Farm Production in Case of Endogenous Input Quantities

Replaced with revised version of paper 07/29/09.panel data, subsidies, household model, endogeneity, Norwegian grain farming, Agricultural and Food Policy, Consumer/Household Economics, Production Economics,

DETERMINANTS OF PART-TIME FARMING AND ITS EFFECT ON FARM PRODUCTIVITY AND EFFICIENCY

Little attention has been given in the agricultural economics literature to the impact of off-farm work on farm productivity and efficiency. More knowledge about what determines part-time farming and whether farm productivity and efficiency are affected by part-time farming could help policy makers introduce better targeted rural development policies. This paper aims to fill the above-mentioned gaps by first analysing factors that influence the choice of off-farm work; and then examining how off-farm work influences productivity and technical efficiency at the farm level. An unbalanced panel data set from 1991 to 2005 from Norwegian grain farms is used for this purpose. The results show that the likelihood of off-farm work and the share of time allocated to it increase with increasing age (up to 39 years), and with low relative yields (compared to others farms in the surrounding area/region). The level of support payments is not significantly associated with the extent of off-farm work. Large-scale farms and single farmers tend to have a lower likelihood of off-farm work. Average technical efficiency was found to be 79%. Farmers with low variability in farm revenue were found to be more technically efficient than farmers with high revenue variability. We did not find any evidence of off-farm work share affecting farm productivity − the predicted off-farm work share was not statistically significant. In other words, we did not find any systematic difference in farm productivity and technical efficiency between part-time and full-time farmers.off-farm work, productivity, efficiency, unobserved heterogeneity, panel data, Farm Management,

Estimation of TFP growth:a semiparametric smooth coefficient approach

This article uses a semiparametric smooth coefficient model (SPSCM) to estimate TFP growth and its components (scale and technical change). The SPSCM is derived from a nonparametric specification of the production technology represented by an input distance function (IDF), using a growth formulation. The functional coefficients of the SPSCM come naturally from the model and are fully flexible in the sense that no functional form of the underlying production technology is used to derive them. Another advantage of the SPSCM is that it can estimate bias (input and scale) in technical change in a fully flexible manner. We also used a translog IDF framework to estimate TFP growth components. A panel of U.S. electricity generating plants for the period 1986–1998 is used for this purpose. Comparing estimated TFP growth results from both parametric and semiparametric models against the Divisia TFP growth, we conclude that the SPSCM performs the best in tracking the temporal behavior of TFP growth

Assessment of Cavability and categorization of coal measure roof rocks by parting plane approach

From the observations of caving of the overlying roof rock in longwall panels it can be inferred that the caving is dominated by the weak parting layers, laminated nature and massiveness of the roof rock formation. This caving process is controlled by the presence and geo-technical properties of strong beds and weak parting beds in the roof rock layers. Based on the study conducted at different coalfields over longwall panels a ‘Parting Plane Approach’ has been developed for identifying the parting planes in the roof along with strong and weak rock beds. The strata caving behaviour over longwall workings is manifested by local and main falls. They are governed by the thickness, rock mass strength and the induced stresses in the Caving Layer 1 or the Immediate Roof and the Caving Layer 2 or the Main Roof respectively. A software has been developed in MATLAB platform to identify the rock beds as belonging to the Caving Layer 1 and the Caving Layer 2 or the Immediate Roof and the Main Roof. A parameter, Equivalent Main Fall Span (aeq), has been introduced for classifying the overlying roof rock. In this paper the various methods for determination of aeq, viz. an Empirical method, a Mathematical approach, and a Numerical modelling based approach have been discussed along with case studies

Estimation and inference under economic restrictions

Estimation of economic relationships often requires imposition of constraints such as positivity or monotonicity on each observation. Methods to impose such constraints, however, vary depending upon the estimation technique employed. We describe a general methodology to impose (observation-specific) constraints for the class of linear regression estimators using a method known as constraint weighted bootstrapping. While this method has received attention in the nonparametric regression literature, we show how it can be applied for both parametric and nonparametric estimators. A benefit of this method is that imposing numerous constraints simultaneously can be performed seamlessly. We apply this method to Norwegian dairy farm data to estimate both unconstrained and constrained parametric and nonparametric models

Foreign presence, technical efficiency and firm survival in Greece: a simultaneous equation model with latent variables approach

The aim of the paper is to explain the role that technical efficiency and foreign spillover effects have on firm survival. Panel data from Greek manufacturing industry (3142 firms) in 1997-2003 are used. Technical efficiency is estimated through a CES translog production function. A hazard function is then used (corresponding to the Exponential and Weibull distributions as well as the Cox model) to estimate survival probabilities. While foreign spillovers exercise a positive impact on hazard, foreign firms do not have any distinctive survival advantage compared to their domestic rivals. On the contrary, technical efficiency affects hazard in a negative way, improving survival expectations

Creative destruction over the business cycle: a stochastic frontier analysis

[[abstract]]This paper examines the within-industry distributions of jobs created and destructed across plants in terms of technical efficiency, technical efficiency change, scale effect, and technical change. It further investigates how these distributions vary with economic activity. By applying the stochastic frontier analysis to plant-level longitudinal data on Taiwan’s 23 two-digit manufacturing industries spanning the period 1992–2003, we find that jobs created (destructed) are disproportionately clustered at plants with lower technical efficiency but higher rate of technical change. A fall in economic activities is associated with a statistically significant decrease (increase) in the fraction of newly created (destructed) jobs accounted for by plants with a higher rate of technical change, indicating that creative destruction is more pronounced during economic contractions.[[journaltype]]國外[[incitationindex]]SSCI[[ispeerreviewed]]Y[[countrycodes]]US