中国城市科技人才集聚促进了全要素生产率增长吗——来自285个地级市的经验研究

基于2005—2018年中国内地285个地级市数据，对城市科技人才集聚与全要素生产率（简称“TFP”）进行测度分析，实证考察科技人才集聚对TFP的影响。结果表明：①城市科技人才集聚与TFP空间分异特征显著，但二者具有较强的时空一致性，即科技人才集聚特征显著的城市，其TFP也相对稳定；②城市科技人才集聚对TFP的影响呈倒U型，但研究期内大多数城市仍处于集聚效应占主导阶段,科技人才集聚通过提升城市技术进步水平促进TFP增长，而科技人才集聚对技术效率的影响呈倒U型；③不同类型城市科技人才集聚对其TFP影响的异质性显著，且适宜集聚区间也存在差异。省会城市及一、二线城市等优势特征显著的城市所能承受的科技人才集聚规模上限更高，有利于通过释放集聚红利促进TFP增长，而非省会城市、三线及以下城市等则拐点值较低。     

Overcoming the “Solow paradox”: Tariff reduction and productivity growth of Chinese ICT firms

This paper examines the phenomenon of the “Solow paradox” in China using the Annual Survey of Industrial Production database and the China Customs Records dataset from 1998 to 2007. We find that China likely fell into the Solow paradox in the period 1998–2002, but the total factor productivity of information and communication technology (ICT) enterprises has achieved rapid growth since 2003. Accession to the World Trade Organization is the key reason for China to overcome the Solow paradox, that is, input tariff reduction significantly promoted the productivity of ICT firms. A series of validity and robustness checks confirmed the results. Mechanism analysis shows that input liberalization promotes the productivity of ICT firms through optimizing factor structure, importing more and high-quality inputs, and increasing research and development investment. The conclusions provide strong empirical evidence for developing countries to overcome the Solow paradox through trade liberalization.     

服务业内部结构异质性演化与行业发展差距研究——基于全要素生产率视角下的分析

基于1990—2017年行业面板数据，采用超越对数生产函数对服务业各细分行业TFP增长率进行分解和测度，揭示我国服务业内部结构生产率演化进程及其异质性现象，并采用可导性对数方差分解法、VAR协整模型和误差修正模型（VECM）考察TFP及其构成部分对服务业行业发展差距的贡献度，评估其异质性作用于行业发展差距的长短期效应。研究发现，在服务业内部结构演化过程中，TFP、技术进步和技术效率改进呈逐步下降趋势，其中技术进步是推动TFP增长的核心，规模效率改进发展水平一直滞后，配置效率改进在服务业发展初期较为滞后，但水平逐步提升；生产性和生活性服务业行业间TFP及构成部分异质性在演化过程中呈下降趋势，且生活性服务业行业间异质性程度要小于生产性服务业，行业间异质性变化幅度最大的是规模效率改进，技术效率改进异质性波动程度最小；TFP异质性是造成行业间发展差距扩大的主要原因，其中技术效率改进是主导因素，且该效应的发挥只有在长期具有显著性。     

Agricultural productivity growth in Brazil: Large and small farms excel

The long-standing debate on the relationship between farm size and productivity has been generally limited by the range of farm sizes evaluated and the definition of productivity. In this paper we use data from three Brazilian agricultural censuses to address these issues. In particular, we introduce a wider distribution of farm sizes than presently available from the literature and we employ total factor productivity (TFP) as our performance measure. In doing so, we test which farm size class had the highest TFP levels in 1985 and 2006, how factor productivity growth varied within and across farm size classes between those years, and which policy or factor had the greatest productivity enhancing effect. When examining TFP growth, we move beyond the common decomposition into technical and efficiency changes by identifying the complete distribution of farm productivity performances. We find that by 2006 a U-shaped distribution of productivity over farm sizes had emerged. Considerable 1985–2006 TFP growth differences are prevalent; positive rates for the majority accompany stagnant or negative rates for some. Public education investments were associated with faster productivity growth regardless of farm size, while technical assistance’s positive effect and credit’s negative effect were associated with larger farm sizes. The role of specialization varied by size.     

Are China’s regional agricultural productivities converging: How and why?

This article tests the hypotheses of convergence to a single level of total factor productivity (TFP), and a steady state of TFP growth rate in China’s agricultural sector. Based on multilateral TFP estimates we found that China’s agricultural sector has rebounded in recent years from a slower TFP growth in the 2005–2007 period. While convergence test results confirm a “catch-up” effect that provinces with lower TFP levels tend to grow faster than others, estimated rates of β convergence are conditional on how we capture the heterogeneity effect across regions. The rates of β convergence range from 0.016 to 0.039 under different model specifications. Estimates show that higher growth rates of educational attainment, R&D, and intermediate goods density (per unit of labor) can enhance TFP growth. Unfortunately, there is no evidence of an overall σ convergence, indicating that TFP levels are not converging except in the South region. It implies that to catch up with leading provinces, it would require extra efforts for those lagging behind by increasing their region-specific research investment, promoting rural educational attainment, and enhancing embodied technical change.     

Can fintech improve the efficiency of commercial banks? —An analysis based on big data

This paper assess the potential impact of Fintech on the banking industry. Results suggest that, for commercial banks, development of Fintech leads to increased profitability, financial innovation, and improved control of risk. Overall, by using financial technology, commercial banks can improve their traditional business model by reducing bank operating costs, improving service efficiency, strengthening risk control capabilities, and creating enhanced customer-oriented business models for customers; thereby improving comprehensive competitiveness. We also find that levels of such outcomes vary with levels of respective bank’s use of technological innovation.     

国家审计能促进国有企业全要素生产率增长吗?

如何促进国有企业治理改善，实现高质量发展，是当前国有企业审计亟须解决的问题。基于2010—2018年审计署公布的中央企业财务收支审计结果公告，采用双重差分模型实证检验国家审计对中央企业控股上市公司全要素生产率的影响及其作用机理。研究发现，国家审计能提高中央企业控股上市公司全要素生产率，主要体现在被审计当年及之后两年，通过扩大国家审计监督内容覆盖广度、拓展国家审计目标深度和加强国家审计权限行使力度实现。进一步发现，国家审计能通过促进中央企业控股上市公司增加研发投入、提高内部控制质量、抑制高管超额在职消费、缓解第一类代理问题等改善公司治理水平，提高全要素生产率。这对优化国有企业审计治理机制，提高全要素生产率，助推经济高质量发展具有启示意义。     

去工业化、技术差距与产业转移的技术溢出效应

中西部承接产业转移缺乏显著的正向技术溢出效应，成为2000年后区际技术差距持续扩大以及近年部分地区过早去工业化的关键影响因素之一。利用2001~2017年全国30个省（市）面板数据研究证实，各地区技术水平与工业增加值在地区生产总值中的份额之间存在显著正相关性；中西部在2005~2014年承接了较大规模产业转移，而区际技术差距却持续扩大，技术溢出效应显著为负。在相对偏低的技术水平条件下，中西部地区在十余年的产业承接中主要依赖于廉价的要素成本优势，其自主创新能力、创新资源积累已不足以抵御本地消费升级、要素成本上升与国际需求疲软等负面因素的叠加影响。最终，技术差距、商品及服务净输出赤字的扩大至少加快了部分欠发达地区的去工业化。     

Investment dynamics and capital distortion: State and non-state firms in China

This paper studies investment dynamics in Chinese manufacturing firms. The analysis estimates capital adjustment costs and uncovers capital distortion in state and non-state firms. There is strong evidence of quadratic adjustment cost and distortion in capital price for both types of firms. The capital distortion is a major source of capital misallocation in Chinese firms. Completely removing the distortion would increase aggregate total factor productivity (TFP) by 18–29%.     

Technology spillover through trade and TFP convergence: 135 years of evidence for the OECD countries

Using a new dataset on imports of technology and total factor productivity (TFP) over 135 years for the OECD countries, this paper tests whether knowledge has been transmitted internationally through the channel of trade. The empirical estimates show that there is a robust relationship between TFP and imports of knowledge and that 93% of the increase in TFP over the past century has been solely due to imports of knowledge. Furthermore, it is shown that knowledge spillovers have been an important contributing factor behind the TFP convergence among the OECD countries over the period 1870 to 2004.