Trade and Profitability: Is there an export premium? Evidence from Italian manufacturing firms

Using firm level data this study investigates the relation between export activity and firm's profitability. The paper shows that, contrary to other performance indicators such as productivity, exporting activity is not systematically associated to higher firm's profitability. This is shown both by means of non-parametric methods and, with an approach that is more standard within the empirical trade literature, by regression techniques that try to identify an "export premium".export premium; productivity; profitability

Technology as Problem-Solving Procedures and Technology as Input-Output Relations: Some Perspectives on the Theory of Production

In this work, inspired by Winter [2006], in fact of vintage 1968, we discuss the relation between three dierent levels of analysis of technologies, namely as (i) bodies of problem-solving knowledge, (ii) organizational procedures, and (iii) input-output relations. We begin by arguing that the "primitive" levels of investigation, "where the action is", are those which concern knowledge and organizational procedures, while in most respects the I/O representation is just an ex post, derived, one. Next, we outline what we consider to be important advances in the understanding of productive knowledge and of the nature and behaviors of business organizations which to a good extent embody such a knowledge. Finally, we explore some implications of such "procedural" view of technologies in terms of input-output relations (of which standard production functions are a particular instantiation). We do that with the help of some pieces of evidence, drawing both upon incumbent literature and our own elaboration on micro longitudinal data on the Italian industry.Theory of Production, Organizational Routines, Problem-solving Knowledge, Production Function, Micro-heterogeneity

Wage structure in Italian Manufacturing firms

This paper jointly considers some pieces of evidence regarding peculiarities of industries' structure which are often separately addressed. Italian industrial sectors are known to be characterized by a high proportion of small enterprises that suffers from 'constraints to growth'. We look at the interplay of variables accounting for size, productivity and labor cost, and assess the relevance of labor force structure in determining the structure of cost for wage. We start by exploring the firm size-wage effect in Italian manufacturing sectors and investigate the extent to which such a trend is offset by a positive and counterbalancing relation linking together productivity and size. We investigate how size contributes to the wage differential within a firm on the earnings of distinct categories of employees. The empirical findings we present reveal that labor force structure matters in determining the wage cost structure of firms.Cost of labor; Productivity; Wage-size effect

Energy, Development, and the Environment: An Appraisal Three Decades After the "Limits to Growth" Debate

This work builds upon some long-term secular regularities concerning the relation between consumption of energy, technological progress and economic growth and reassesses the old question raised around forty years ago in the "limits to growth" discussion (Meadows et al. [1972]), namely are the current patterns of development and in particular the current patterns of energy use environmentally sustainable? The questions we shall address are the following. First, the environmental sustainability of patterns of energy consumption that for long have implied the notion of the environment as a free good, without any negative social externalities and even less so any environmental threat. Second, the importance - and limits - of relative price changes with respect to the dynamics of consumption of energy. Third, the role of fundamental discontinuities between different "technological paradigms".Energy Consumption, Emissions, Sustainability

Characterizing the Production Process: A Disaggregated Analysis of Italian Manufacturing Firms

This paper provides a description of the production process by comparing different frameworks in which to analyze the relations between inputs and output. The analysis is performed on a representative sample of Italian manufacturing firms. We employ both parametric and non-parametric analysis. The last allows to detect presence of heterogeneity in the way the production is carried out within each sector. We review some traditional issues in the econometrics of production function estimation and explain how some of them can be solved exploiting the cross-sectional time-series nature of data. Results of the econometric analysis show that coefficients estimates tend to be robust with respect to different models employed. Analysis of levels of labor productivity confirms presence of significant intra-sector heterogeneity which persists over time.Input and output relation, Panel data, Returns to scale .

Intermediaries in International Trade: Direct versus indirect modes of export

This paper examines the factors that give rise to intermediaries in exporting and explores the implications for trade volumes. Export intermediaries such as wholesalers serve different markets and export different products than manufacturing exporters. In particular, high market-specific fixed costs of exporting, the (lack of) quality of the general contracting environment and product-specific factors play important roles in explaining the existence of export intermediaries. These underlying differences between direct and intermediary exporters have important consequences for trade flows. The ability of export intermediaries to overcome country and product fixed costs means that they can more easily respond along the extensive margin to external shocks. Intermediaries and direct exporters respond differently to exchange rate fluctuations both in terms of the total value of shipments and the number of products exported as well as in terms of prices and quantities. Aggregate exports to destinations with high shares of indirect exports are much less responsive to changes in the real exchange rate than are exports to countries served primarily by direct exporters.

Intermediaries in International Trade: direct versus indirect modes of export

This paper contributes to the relatively new literature on the role of intermediaries in international trade. Using Italian firm-level data, we document significant differences between exporters of different types and highlight the role of country-specific fixed cost in the choice of direct versus indirect modes of export. Recent theoretical work suggests that intermediaries are typically providing solutions to country-specific fixed costs. Our empirical results largely confirm this relationship. Measures of country fixed costs are positively associated with intermediary exports both in the aggregate and within firms. In contrast, proxies for variable trade costs are largely not correlated with differences between direct and indirect exports.heterogeneous firms, international trade, intermediation, wholesalers

Intermediaries in International Trade: direct versus indirect modes of export

This paper contributes to the relatively new literature on the role of intermediaries in international trade. Using Italian firm-level data, we document significant differences between exporters of different types and highlight the role of country-specific fixed cost in the choice of direct versus indirect modes of export. Recent theoretical work suggests that intermediaries are typically providing solutions to country-specific fixed costs. Our empirical results largely confirm this relationship. Measures of country fixed costs are positively associated with intermediary exports both in the aggregate and within firms. In contrast, proxies for variable trade costs are largely not correlated with differences between direct and indirect exports.heterogeneous firms, international trade, intermediation, wholesalers

Intermediaries in international trade : Direct versus indirect modes of export

This paper contributes to the relatively new literature on the role of intermediaries in international trade. Using Italian firm-level data, we document significant differences between exporters of different types and highlight the role of country-specific fixed cost in the choice of direct versus indirect modes of export. Recent theoretical work suggests that intermediaries are typically providing solutions to country-specific fixed costs. Our empirical results largely confirm this relationship. Measures of country fixed costs are positively associated with intermediary exports both in the aggregate and within firms. In contrast, proxies for variable trade costs are largely not correlated with differences between direct and indirect exports.

Dynamics of productivity and cost of labor in Italian Manufacturing firms

This paper studies the impact of size on labor cost and productivity for Italian manufacturing firms. The distributions of both labor cost and productivity display a wide support, even when disaggregated by sector of industrial activity. Further, both labor cost and productivity, when considered alone, are growing with the size of the firm. We investigate this relationship on a new set of data and we are able to show that once accounted for productivity differences among firms, size still retains a positive effect on cost of labor in most of the sectors considered