The pattern of changes in the long-term development of establishment size

Hypotheses and analyses dealing with the expansion of small businesses are usually carried out over relatively short periods of time. The patterns drawn from these examinations, e.g., on the question of specific differences in the growth of size, are usually influenced by configurations of the overall economy and limit the realization of regular processes to the phases they are based upon. A second disadvantage lies in most cases in the fact that data sources are used for the empirical analyses that do not cover the economic system as a whole nor for all sizes of establishments. This study attempts to present the development of the sizes of establishments in Germany over a period of more than one hundred years (1882 to 1987) and thus avoids the narrow perspective of previous examinations. It becomes evident that this development does not take a continuous course; instead, it follows a wave pattern. Since this discontinuous development pattern is common to almost all sectors, it appears to be a general phenomenon. This study reveals that the small establishments with more than five employees, contrary to most theoretical assumptions, are of utmost importance even when considered over a long period of time. The growth of small establishments in recent years, observable in all sectors, may not be a unique phenomenon; however, in view of an overall growth of employment and the simultaneous shrinking of large establishments, it occurs under a new constellation.     

The internationalization of the RMB: a perspective vis a vis East Asian economic and financial integration

The People’s Republic of China has achieved remarkable progress in the internationalization of the RMB by introducing a number of concrete measures to boost the RMB’s status on the world stage since 2009. The ongoing RMB internationalization is being promoted under the background of deepening economic and financial integration in East Asia. In this article, we attempt to analyse RMB internationalization from the perspective of East Asian regional integration. We hypothesize that East Asian regional integration lays a broad foundation for China to push RMB internationalization forward. An internationalized RMB, we argue, will play more important roles in the process of East Asian regionalization. Thus, RMB regionalization could be an important and necessary step of internationalization. The Chinese authorities should not only push the RMB toward internationalization under China’s framework of domestic financial system reform, but they should also integrate RMB internationalization into the process of East Asian economic and financial integration. Therefore, a win–win strategy of RMB internationalization for both China and East Asian countries is needed.     

Soziale Marktwirtschaft – das Fundament für Wachstum und Gerechtigkeit

Among all G20 countries, Germany has the lowest level of inequality in terms of disposable income. Germany’s tax and transfer system – which has a strong and effective redistributive impact compared with other countries – plays a key role in this connection. Over the past ten years, positive growth and employment trends have significantly improved opportunities for economic participation and have put a stop to previous trends towards greater income inequality. In order to safeguard efficient growth and redistributive policies in the future, it is essential for Germany to maintain sufficient incentives for investment, innovation and employment. Political reform strategies to ensure equality of opportunity should aim to achieve a more broad-based accumulation of private wealth and to strengthen labour force participation. The promotion of lifelong education and training, and the economic and social application of the knowledge created in this process, will play a decisive role in achieving these objectives.     

One Germany … but is there a common German consumer? east-west differences for marketers to consider

The socialization process into the East German culture has created a lasting impression on millions of former East Germans which will not be erased easily by the turn of political climate or financial gain. Despite a reunited Germany, consumers in what was once East Germany are different in many regards from consumers in what was once West Germany. The results of an empirical study comparing former East and West Germans suggest that consumers socialized in the East have different attitudes toward information sources, advertising, pricing and product quality, as well as differing abilities in evaluating products when compared to those socialized in the West. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Output effects of infrastructures in East and West German states

With respect to the recently ratified economic stimulus package in Germany, it is fundamentally important to observe whether the expansion of physical infrastructure will further contribute to economic growth. This paper presents a way to address the problem of endogeneity using panel data on 16 federal states in Germany and by estimating a panel vector autoregression model for the period from 1993 to 2006. The analysis offers practical benefits for economic policy, indicating that both human capital and transport infrastructures cause heterogeneous output effects in East and West Germany.     

Export Entry,Export Exit and Productivity in German Manufacturing Industries

This paper contributes to the flourishing literature on exports and productivity by using a unique newly available panel of exporting establishments from the manufacturing sector of Germany from 1995 to 2004 to test three hypotheses motivated by a theoretical model by Hopenhayn (Econometrica 1992): (H1) Firms that stop exporting in year t were in t?1 less productive than firms that continue to export in t. (H2) Firms that start to export in year t are less productive than firms that export both in year t?1 and in year t. (H3) Firms from a cohort of export starters that still export in the last year of the panel were more productive in the start year than firms from the same cohort that stopped exporting in between. While results for West Germany support all three hypotheses, this is only the case for (H1) and (H2) in East Germany.     

Between politics and economics

The Federal Republic of Germany considers trade between itself and East Germany not as foreign, but as domestic trade. Since the division of Germany these economic contacts have often given rise to heated discussion and bitter criticism. The close connection between political and economic aims is constantly engendering new fuel. The collision of two completely opposed systems raises a multiplicity of fresh problems.     

Employment generation by small producers in the Canadian manufacturing sector

This paper uses job turnover data to compare how job creation, job destruction and net job change differ for small and large establishments in the Canadian manufacturing sector. It uses several different techniques to correct for the regression-to-the-mean problem that, it has been suggested, might incorrectly lead to the conclusion that small establishments create a disproportionate number of new jobs. It finds that net job creation for smaller establishments is greater than that of large establishments after such changes are made. The paper also compares the importance of small and large establishments in the manufacturing sectors of Canada and the United States. The Canadian manufacturing sector is shown to have both a larger proportion of employment in smaller establishments but also to have a small establishment sector that is growing in importance relative to that of the United States.     

Germany’s Post- Wirtschaftswunder Struggle

For many years after World War II, Germany’s economic output grew very rapidly—a period commonly referred to as the “Wirtschaftswunder,” or economic miracle. It came to an end in the 1970s. This paper addresses three questions: Why did growth decline after the 1970s? Why did Germany take so long to embark on reforms? What is the economic outlook today? It argues that two factors were responsible for falling growth: the end of the post-World War II economic catch-up and a failure to reform the economy in response to shocks. Because of Germany’s political system, economic reforms require broad popular support. However, this support changes constantly due to frequent elections, which makes it difficult for governments to push through ambitious reforms that typically have payoffs stretching beyond electoral cycles. Nonetheless, the depth of the 2001-05 economic downturn and Germany’s comparatively poor economic growth performance in Europe have by now forged a general agreement on the need for change. The European Union, notably with its policies that combat state aid and that call for sound fiscal positions, has played an important role in forging this agreement. Accordingly, Germany’s economic outlook has by now improved noticeably, although significant challenges remain.     

Small firms,business dynamics and differential development of economic well-being

In recent years a growing stream of research has examined the relationships between structural characteristics of regions and their levels of new firm formation. This empirical study aims at supplementing such findings with analyses that include other forms of business dynamics, and also the possible well-being effects of such dynamics. From a unique and comprehensive data set that tracks all births, deaths, expansions, and contractions of commercial business establishments in Sweden 1985–89, six groups of regions with different patterns of dynamics are extracted by means of cluster analysis. The clusters' structural characteristics and their development of economic well-being are also compared. The results suggesta) that the patterns of business dynamics are contingent on the structural characteristics of regions,b) that high formation and turnover of establishments are associated with a relative increase in economic well-being, andc) that small, autonomous firms have a vital role in this process.     

Die Balance zwischen Eigenverantwortung und gemeinschaftlichem Handeln für ein starkes Europa

The newly elected French president Macron now faces the challenge of reforming the French economy by increasing its competitiveness in order to decrease unemployment and to open new perspectives for a more prosperous economic future. The success of this endeavour is also of the utmost importance for Germany. The best support that Germany can offer to support French reforms consists of promoting the European integration process based on the subsidiarity principle. This can only be achieved by maintaining a balance between national responsibility and joint action and by choosing the right sequence of reform steps.     

Do Newly Founded Firms Pay Lower Wages? First Evidence from Germany

Using a linked employer–employee data set for Germany, this paper analyses wage setting in a cohort of newly founded and other establishments from 1997 to 2001. While theory provides alternative explanations for higher or lower wages in newly founded firms, we show empirically that start-ups tend to pay lower wages, ceteris paribus. On average, wages in newly founded establishments are 8% lower than in similar incumbent firms. This negative wage differential is substantially smaller in eastern than in western Germany. The wage differential is shown to decline over time as the newly founded firms become more mature.     

Establishment exits in Germany: the role of size and age

Using comprehensive data for West Germany, this paper investigates the determinants of establishment exit. We find that between 1975 and 2006 the average exit rate has risen considerably. In order to test various “liabilities” of establishment survival identified in the literature, we analyzed the impact of establishment size and put a special focus on differences between young and mature establishments. Our empirical analysis shows that the mortality risk falls with establishment size, which confirms the liability of smallness. The probability of exit is substantially higher for young establishments which are not more than 5 years old, thus confirming the liability of newness. There also exists a liability of aging since exit rates first decline over time, reaching a minimum at ages 15–18, and then rise again somewhat. The determinants of exit differ substantially between young and mature establishments, suggesting that young establishments are more vulnerable in a number of ways.     

Lending to Small and Medium-Sized Firms: Is There an East-West Gap in Germany?

The financing of small and medium-sized firms is important for the catching-up of the East German to the West German economy since reunification. We explore whether it is restricted by unfavorable bank loan terms, using bank-survey data on lending decisions to small and medium-sized firms. A comparison of the terms of lending between the former East German and West German states yields a lending gap given by higher loan prices and collateral requirements in East Germany. This gap can be explained by differences in credit risks and lending strategies of banks.     

Service industries and regional development: An analysis for eastern Germany

By using a shift-share regression approach the contribution of services to the development of employment in eastern Germany is analysed. The results obtained with highly differentiated data from the employment statistics show that services contributed more to a favourable path of development than other industries. This is due in part to general world-wide processes of structural change and the special situation in eastern Germany. Many subsidies were transferred to the East, which stabilises the special segment of the economy related to local demand. This segment is made up mostly of services in eastern Germany. Processes of industrial change can be explained using structural change approaches. It is shown that processes of de-concentration play a role in explaining regional disparities, since inverse localisation and positive urbanisation effects are visible. For the empirical analyses an augmented approach is applied which uses a generalisation of an econometric analogue from the common shift-share method. It combines the strengths of the traditional approach with all the advantages of theory-oriented modelling and regression analysis.     

城镇化与城乡统筹的综合改革

中国改革以来的城镇化过程中,二元结构受到了很大的冲击但又远未消除,经济体制改革向纵深推进但城乡统筹的综合改革相对滞后。新形势下,必须加快推进城乡统筹的综合改革。要将城镇化作为推进城乡统筹综合改革的一条主线,努力构建贯穿农村人口城镇化转移流程的综合改革“试验链”。     

东亚区域生产网络发展与东亚区域经济合作的深化

随着产品内分工的发展,东亚区域生产网络的日益深化已成为东亚区域经济发展不可逆的趋势。本文梳理了东亚区域生产网络的表现和特征,对东亚区域生产网络引起的东亚贸易结构变化进行了探讨,分析了东亚区域生产网络对东亚各经济体的影响,揭示了东亚区域生产网络存在的缺点和潜在问题,并提出在东亚区域经济合作不断深化的背景下,促进东亚区域生产网络进一步发展的策略。     

Understanding the Level of Marketing Activity in the Leisure Sector

The level of marketing activity in services businesses has been widley debated in the services literature. The article reviews the application of marketing analysis, planning and control activities in one area of the leisure sector: wildlife attractions, zoos and safari parks. The analysis combines a literature review with secondary data collection and semi-structured personal interviews with senior managers at key establishments. The findings highlight the use of recongnised strategic and tactical marketing concepts which are subsequently related to a recognised model of services marketing. The relevance of the services marketing model is seen to vary for different groups of establishments. The terms minimalists, entrepreneurs and planners are used to reflect the level of marketing activity undertaken.     

Workers’ participation in regional economic change following establishment closure

This article analyses if and when workers affected by economic destruction in the form of establishment closures move to more productive or newly started establishments in the region, become self-employed, leave the region or become displaced. Results from multinominal probit models show that the majority of these workers face destructive employment outcomes from a Schumpeterian point of view compared to a matched sample of workers not subject to a closure. However, we do find indications of a creative destruction as a small, albeit significant, share become employed in young establishments. Different types of human capital influence the likelihood of triggering positive or negative regional outcomes. While higher education significantly decreases the risk for unemployment, high-income earners more often become engaged in creative outcomes. Firm tenure increases the likelihood of becoming employed in younger establishments. There are significant spatial differences where metropolitan regions excel as loci of creative change, whereas smaller and peripheral regions face far less creative outcomes of economic transformation.