Trade costs, openness and productivity: market access at home and abroad

This paper discusses the channels between openness and productivity and trade hampering factors. The stylized facts from the heterogeneous firms literature suggests that firms face market entry costs for each new product they export and to each new export market. Transport costs, border costs and retail and wholesale distribution costs might add up to 170% of the export value, but formal import tariffs and duties are relatively unimportant. The results by the Observatory of European SMEs survey, which has firm-level data for the whole European Union confirm this result. Lack of knowledge on export markets and regulations in other countries are important trade barriers for European firms. From these outcomes it could be derived that EU trade policies should be directed to deep integration with other countries, preferably by implementing internal market policies for goods and services trade and foreign direct investment. These policies can deal with reducing regulations heterogeneity, non-tariff barriers and customs procedures. Providing public information on export markets (e.g. customers, contact, and distribution networks) could also be helpful, if well targeted

Treatment of heart failure in Dutch general practice

BACKGROUND: To study the relation between the prescription rates of selected cardiovascular drugs (ACE-inhibitors and Angiotensin receptor blockers, beta-blockers, diuretics, and combinations), sociodemographic factors (age, gender and socioeconomic class) and concomitant diseases (hypertension, coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular accident, heart valve disease, atrial fibrillation, diabetes mellitus and asthma/COPD) among patients with heart failure cared for in general practice. METHODS: Data from the second Dutch National Survey in General Practice, conducted mainly in 2001. In this study the data of 96 practices with a registered patient population of 374.000 were used. Data included diagnosis made during one year by general practitioners, derived from the electronic medical records, prescriptions for medication and sociodemographic characteristics collected via a postal questionnary (response 76%) RESULTS: A diagnosis of HF was found with 2771 patients (7.1 in 1000). Their mean age was 77.7 years, 68% was 75 years or older, 55% of the patients were women. Overall prescription rates for RAAS-I, beta-blockers and diuretics were 50%, 32%, 86%, respectively, whereas a combination of these three drugs was prescribed in 18%. Variations in prescription rates were mainly related to age and concomitant diseases. CONCLUSION: Prescription is not influenced by gender, to a small degree influenced by socioeconomic status and to a large degree by age and concomitant diseases