R&D SPILLOVERS IN AGRICULTURE: RESULTS FROM A NORTH-SOUTH TRADE MODEL

This study attempts to analyze technical change and the role of R&D spillovers in this process using a quality innovation model. Domestic R&D sector consists of a public and a private R&D sector. Trade is the mechanism through which R&D spillovers are realized, along with increased market size and increased competition. Propositions of the model are tested for the U.S. agricultural sector data. It is found that R&D spillovers affect technological change as well as private R&D spending significantly and positively.Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

The Impact of Energy Markets on the EU Agricultural Sector

The objective of this study is to analyze the impact of crude oil prices on the EU-27 agricultural sector in an era when the biofuels sector is expanding because of the policy initiatives taken by the EU Commission and member states. To this end, first a baseline is set up for the EU-27 ethanol, grain, and dried distillers grains markets. In the next step, two different scenarios are run. The first scenario incorporates a $10- per-barrel increase in the EU-27 crude oil price with the ethanol import tariffs in place. The second scenario incorporates the same shock with the ethanol import tariffs removed. In the first scenario, higher crude oil prices increase ethanol consumption, production, and therefore grain prices. In the second scenario, the impact of trade liberalisation is larger than the impact of the higher crude oil price. So, grain prices decline in this scenario despite an expansion in ethanol consumption. If there were a high enough crude oil price shock, which would affect the EU-27 ethanol market more than trade liberalisation, the net impact on grain, feed, and food prices from the crude oil price shock would be mitigated by the increased trade from trade liberalisation. The study shows that the impact of energy prices on the EU-27 agricultural sector is increasing with the emergence of the biofuels sector. It also illustrates the importance of trade policy in responding to higher crude oil and grain prices.Ethanol, energy prices, trade liberalisation, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE IN U.S. AGRICULTURE: THE ROLE OF PUBLIC AND PRIVATE R&D

An endogenous growth model, in which technical change is attained through public and private R&D activities, is utilized to explore the role of technical change in TFP growth, to determine the impact of public and private agricultural R&D investments on the flow of agricultural patents, and to analyze the determinants of private agricultural R&D spending. The implications of the theoretical model are tested empirically for the U.S. agricultural sector. The empirical results are consistent with the theory. The main finding is that there is a positive relationship between TFP growth in the agricultural sector and agricultural patents. Current and past public and private R&D investments in agricultural sector have a significant and positive effect on agricultural patents. It is found that public R&D investment does not crowd out private R&D investment.Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

CAN EU ENLARGEMENT LEAD TO "IMMISERIZING GROWTH"? AN EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATION

The possibility of 'immiserizing growth' in the grain sectors of the acceding countries after the EU enlargement is explored. The impact of the enlargement on the EU, new member states, and world grains markets are projected with different technology transfer scenarios, and the net welfare changes in each scenario are computed.International Relations/Trade,

Private Agricultural R&D in the United States

The objective of this study is to analyze the determinants of private agricultural R&D investment in the United States and the liaison between public and private R&D sectors. The empirical analysis employs U.S. agricultural data for the 1970-1996 period. The results show that federal R&D obligations for basic research, used as a proxy for the complementary role of public R&D, have a significant and positive impact on private agricultural R&D spending. In contrast, federal R&D obligations for applied research, used as a proxy for the substitute role of public R&D, are not found to have a significant impact.applied public agricultural R&D, basic public agricultural R&D, private agricultural R&D, quality innovation model, technical change, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

EU Enlargement and Technology Transfer to New Member States

The European Union (EU) accomplished its biggest enlargement process in 2004 in terms of the number of countries, area, and population. This study focuses on the impact of enlargement, the resulting technology transfer on the grain sectors of the New Member States (NMS), and the consequent welfare implications. The study finds that EU enlargement has important implications for the EU and the NMS, but its impact on the world grain markets is minimal. The results show that producers in the NMS gain from accession because of higher prices, whereas consumers in most NMS face a welfare loss. Incorporating technology transfer into the accession increases the welfare gain of producers despite falling prices because of the larger supply shift. The loss of welfare for consumers in most NMS is lower in this case because of the decline in grain prices

Removing Distortions in the U.S. Ethanol Market: What Does It Imply for the United States and Brazil?

We analyze the impact of trade liberalization and removal of the federal tax credit in the United States on U.S. and Brazilian ethanol markets using a multi-market international ethanol model calibrated on 2005 market data and policies. The removal of trade distortions induces a 23.9 percent increase in the price of world ethanol on average between 2006 and 2015 relative to the baseline. The U.S. domestic ethanol price decreases by 13.6 percent, which results in a 7.2 percent decline in production and a 3.8 percent increase in consumption. The lower domestic price leads to a 3.7 percent rise in the share of fuel ethanol in gasoline consumption. U.S. net ethanol imports increase by 199 percent. Brazil responds to the higher world ethanol price by increasing its production by 9.1 percent on average. Total ethanol consumption in Brazil decreases by 3.3 percent and net exports increase by 64 percent relative to the baseline. The higher ethanol price leads to a 4.9 percent increase in the share of sugarcane used in ethanol production. The removal of trade distortions and 51¢ per gallon tax credit to refiners blending ethanol induces a 16.5 percent increase in the world ethanol price.biofuels, ethanol, renewable fuels, trade liberalization, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, F13, F17, Q17, Q18, Q42,