Innovation, international R&D spillovers and the sectoral heterogeneity of knowledge flows

We analyze the relative effects of national and international, intrasectoral and intersectoral R&D spillovers on innovative activity in six large, industrialized countries over the period 1980–2000. We use patent applications at the European Patent Office to measure innovation and their citations to trace knowledge flows within and across 135 narrowly defined technological fields. Using panel cointegration we show that intersectoral spillovers have a key impact on innovation activities and that domestic R&D has a stronger effect than international R&D. However, within technological fields, estimated international R&D spillovers are 2.4 times the national R&D effects. We find significant differences across chemicals, electronics and machinery industries.     

Technology transfer on a two-way street: R&D spillovers through intermediate input usage and supply

Intermediate input usage is known to channel R&D spillovers across countries and industries. This paper highlights that technology also diffuses across countries and industries through intermediate input supply. Technology transfer to intermediates suppliers ensues from R&D that induces a demand for technologically advanced intermediates. I analyze R&D spillovers through intermediate input usage and supply for 18 manufacturing industries in 20 OECD countries over 1987–2009. Results support both use- and supply-driven R&D spillovers. Comparing their effects reveals interesting variations. Among domestic industries, intermediate input supply is the dominant channel. For international relations, both use- and supply-driven R&D spillovers are found.     

Technological factors and total factor productivity in China: Evidence based on a panel threshold model

This study investigates the effects of technological factors, including indigenous research and development (R&D) investments, technology spillovers coming from foreign direct investments, export, and import, on China's total factor productivity (TFP). Using provincial panel data of China, covering 30 provinces over the period 2000–2014, our results confirm that indigenous R&D investments play a leading role in promoting TFP. Linear analysis suggests that, except for export, the technology spillovers through openness are beneficial for TFP growth. However, a further discussion based on a panel threshold model suggests that the different behaviours of these technology spillovers are dependent on the technological absorptive capacity affecting factors, such as human capital and indigenous R&D investments. The human capital will strengthen the spillover effects of each technology spillover. However, R&D intensity initially tends to hamper their spillover effects. Once the R&D intensity exceeds a certain level, the negative spillover effect of export on TFP tends to be alleviated, and the positive spillover effect of foreign direct investment and import on TFP will increase.     

Openness and total factor productivity in Swedish manufacturing, 1980–1995

Openness and Total Factor Productivity in Swedish Manufacturing, 1980–1995. — This paper studies the effect of openness on total factor productivity (TFP) growth. Using industry-level data for Swedish manufacturing from 1980 to 1995, the paper shows that integrated industries tend to be more engaged in R&D and have more entry and exit activity than other industries. The results show that domestic R&D intensity does not contribute to the TFP growth rate. Instead, openness to international markets, which helps facilitate technology spillovers, is an important factor. There is also some evidence that producers exiting the market are less productive, implying that such exits will increase the average productivity of the industry.     

Services content of Japanese trade

This paper investigates the scale of direct and indirect services trade, or services content, in Japanese trade between 1985 and 1995 using data from Japanese input–output tables. The empirical analysis revealed that the services content reflected the characteristics of the Japanese economy. The scale of research and development (R&D) services in total services trade has been much higher throughout the period than has the scale of other services. The R&D services content of Japanese merchandise exports amounted to US$ 27.0 billion in 1995, 84.3 percent of which was channeled through machinery exports. The R&D services content of Japanese machinery exports toward East and Southeast Asia grew rapidly, especially toward ASEAN countries. Our results confirm the importance of the traded-related international R&D spillovers.     

In search of FDI-transmitted R&D spillovers: A study based on Swedish data

In Search of FDI-Transmitted R& D Spillovers: A Study Based on Swedish Data. — This paper analyzes empirically whether inward and outward foreign direct investment (FDI) work as channels for international R&D spillovers. The authors utilize firm-level and industry-level data for Swedish manufacturing. Hardly any evidence of FDI-related R&D spillovers is found. But while the results do not provide support for the hypothesis that the activity level of MNEs’ affiliates matters for the extent of FDI-transmitted international spillovers, they suggest that utilizing foreign affiliates’ employment as a weighting scheme may be too crude a measure. The authors’ analysis shows indeed that the type of activity — R&D or assembly — carried out in the affiliates matters significantly for technology sourcing.     

研发效率、技术溢出与政府的创新补贴

 在一个三阶段博弈模型的基础上,本文研究了存在技术溢出情况下政府的创新激励政策与企业的研发策略。结果表明,无论是实行竞争型创新补贴政策还是合作型创新补贴政策,政府都应该优先补贴那些低成本、高效率的创新行为。贸易自由化提高了国家的创新补贴水平,但是技术溢出本身对创新补贴的影响却具有不确定性。文章的结果同时显示,贸易便利化的实施与高技术溢出提高了消费者剩余与国民福利水平。贸易壁垒虽然强化了企业对本国市场的垄断,但是,在考虑了政府的创新补贴政策后,具有创新激励的企业实际上更倾向于自由贸易结果,因此,相对于严格的专利保护制度,创新补贴政策可能更容易促进国民福利水平的提高。     

Productivity gains,technology spillovers and trade: Indonesian manufacturing, 1980-96

The importance of R&D spillovers for productivity growth has been well documented in the literature. While studies in the developed country context have focused extensively on sectoral linkages, research on North-South spillovers has largely been confined to the aggregate level. This paper assesses the contribution of international R&D spillovers to manufacturing performance in Indonesia at the sectoral level. Drawing on OECD and Indonesian data sources, we consider two distinct phases: a phase characterised by intense policy regulation (1980-87), followed by a phase of liberalisation and reform (1988-96). Our results indicate that international technology spillovers made a significant contribution to the performance of Indonesian manufacturing, especially after liberalisation. The contribution of technology spillovers to productivity change is influenced by sectoral characteristics and industrial market structure.     

Investigating the relationship between health and economic growth: Empirical evidence from a panel of 5 Asian countries

In this paper, we investigate the relationship between health and economic growth through including investment, exports, imports, and research and development (R&D), for 5 Asian countries using panel unit root, panel cointegration with structural breaks and panel long-run estimator for the period 1974–2007. We model this relationship within the production function framework, and unravel two important results. First, we find that in all four variants of the growth model, variables share a long-run relationship; that is, they are cointegrated. Second, we find that in the long-run, while health, investment, exports, EDRD (the interaction term between education and R&D), and R&D have contributed positively to economic growth, imports have had a statistically significant negative effect while education has had an insignificant effect. We draw important policy implications from these findings.     

Technology spillovers,absorptive capacity and economic growth

By establishing an endogenous growth model with knowledge-driven R&D, this paper aims to investigate the relationship between international technology spillovers, the host country's absorptive capability and endogenous economic growth. The solution to the competitive equilibrium problem shows that long-run growth arises from improvements in absorptive capability and higher human capital stocks, while the relationships between openness, the technology gap and the steady-state growth rate are uncertain. Econometric estimates of China's economic growth are obtained using province level data covering the period 1996–2002. The estimates indicate that technology spillovers depend on the host country's human capital investment and degree of openness, and that FDI is a more significant spillover channel than imports.     

Trade and International R&D Spillovers among OECD Countries

This paper examines the relationship between trade patterns and international research-and-development (R&D) spillovers using Kao and Chiang's (1998) and Kao's (1999) recently developed panel cointegration techniques. Monte Carlo-type tests demonstrate that the choice of weights used in constructing foreign R&D stocks is informative of the spillover transmission when panel cointegration techniques are employed. However, the evidence does not support a relationship between import patterns and R&D spillovers. The relationship between export patterns and R&D spillovers is then considered. Consistent with recent theoretical models (Ben-David and Loewy 1998), the evidence suggests that exporters receive substantial R&D spillovers from their customers.     

Panel Cointegration Estimation of International Knowledge Spillovers

Abstract

This paper estimates the effect of international knowledge spillovers through import on a country's productivity, using panel data from 13 Organizations for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries during 1981–1999 and two alternative estimation methods for the panel cointegration model. The results confirm the robust effect of international knowledge spillovers through the flows of intermediate goods import. The magnitude of the effect is much greater in the non-G7 countries than in the G7 countries according to the fully modified ordinary least squares (OLS) estimation. By contrast, domestic knowledge capital stocks help enhance a country's productivity only in the G7 countries.     

International capital market integration: Implications for convergence, growth, and welfare

This paper studies the effects of international capital market integration on welfare and the speed of adjustment in a two-region endogenous growth model. Monopolistic firms undertake research and development (R&D) to improve their productivity level. National and international knowledge spillovers affect the returns to R&D. The two countries differ with respect to the initial productivity level and R&D capability (which is a proxy for human capital and structural policies). Long-run productivity gaps are determined by the difference in R&D capability. Over time, there is conditional convergence in productivity levels. The speed of convergence is larger with integrated international capital markets than without. Long-run gaps in consumption levels are larger in the former situation than in the latter. Capital market integration harms (benefits) the leading (lagging) region if domestic spillovers are more important than international spillovers and differences in R&D capabilities are small.The authors research is supported by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences. He thanks Lucas Bretschger, Theo van de Klundert, and Richard Nahuis, Thomas Steger, and Helmut Wagner for comments on an earlier version.     

R&D spillovers and the case for industrial policy in an open economy

In this paper we consider the case for subsidies towards firmswhich generate R&D spillovers in open economies. We showthat in the presence of strategic behaviour by firms many expectedresults are overturned. Local R&D spillovers to other domesticfirms may justify an R&D tax rather than a subsidy; R&Dcooperation by local firms over-internalises the externalityand also justifies an R&D tax; and international spilloverswhich benefit foreign firms may justify a subsidy, even thoughthe government cares only about the profits of home firms.     

Innovation,Technology Transfer and Labor Productivity Linkages: Evidence from a Panel of Manufacturing Industries

The paper explores the linkages between labour productivity, innovation and technology spillovers in a panel of manufacturing industries. The roles of R&D, human capital and international trade are considered in stimulating innovation and/or facilitating technology transfer. Using panel-based unit root tests and cointegration analysis, the results indicate the existence of a single long-run equilibrium relation between labour productivity, innovation and technology transfer. Further, R&D, trade and human capital have statistically and, especially the latter, quantitatively important effects on labour productivity both directly via innovation and indirectly as they enhance technology diffusion. JEL no.  C23, L60, O30     

Knowledge spillovers from foreign direct investment in R&D: Evidence from Japanese firm-level data

This study uses firm-level panel data from the Japanese manufacturing industries and examines whether foreign direct investment generates intra-industry knowledge spillovers to domestic firms. The analysis found positive effects of R&D stocks of foreign firms on the productivity of domestic firms, while effects of capital stocks of foreign firms were absent, suggesting that knowledge of foreign firms spills over through their R&D activities, but not through their production activities. In addition, we found that the extent of spillovers from R&D stock of foreign firms is substantially larger than spillovers from R&D stock of domestic firms.     

Efficiency change and productivity growth in agriculture: A comparative analysis for selected East Asian economies

This study focuses on identifying the sources of agricultural growth for eight East Asian economies – with special emphasis on factors that can better explain different components of growth. The Malmquist productivity growth index and its two components are calculated and regressed on variables including the human capital endowment, domestic R&D, international spillovers, and country-specific farming characteristics to characterize the differential patterns of growth. Our empirical evidence suggests that domestic R&D and its interaction with human capital constitute the major determinant of individual economy's progress in agricultural technology, whereas the human capital endowment is crucial for the catching up effect. Furthermore, for foreign knowledge to contribute to productivity growth either through innovation or through catching up, the host economy has to develop a sufficient learning capacity from education. Countries that do not attempt to develop the learning capability to assimilate and exploit the freely available knowledge may not benefit from international spillovers of agricultural R&D.     

Scientific and technological dimensions of the macrostructural forecast

This paper explores possible approaches to quantifying the relationship between expenditures on research and development and economic development. The mechanisms that underpin the transfer of scientific results via the imports of final products, goods, and services have been analyzed. The impact of total R&D costs on the dynamic and structural characteristics of economic development are investigated. The level of R&D costs, which is required in the medium term in order to pursue the constructive scenario for the development of the Russian economy, has been estimated.     

R&;D,trade, and productivity growth in korean manufacturing

This paper investigates the effects of both R&D spillovers and trade patterns on productivity in Korean manufacturing, using industry-level data. The results show that domestic and foreign R&D capital stocks played an important R&D in improving the total factor productivity of Korean manufacturing. Moreover, productivity is higher in export industries and the more open industries, and the effects of foreign R&D capital are stronger in the industries with large import shares or large intra-industry trade shares. JEL no. F10, O32, O47.     

International Trade and R&D Investment: Evidence from Chinese Manufacturing Firms

A current concern for China's long‐term growth prospect is whether China can become an innovative economy and achieve industrial upgrading to compensate for the gradually declining competitiveness resulting from low‐cost labor. The present study examines this issue by exploring how trade participation impacts on the R&D investment of manufacturing firms through various channels. Merging China's Annual Manufacturing Survey Dataset and the Chinese Customs Dataset allows us to study such a relationship at the individual firm level. The empirical results suggest that channels such as geographical diversification of export markets, share of imports from high‐income countries, average unit value of imports, number of intermediate goods and capital goods imports, and the trade regime are significant factors that influence firm‐level R&D investment. The study discusses the policy implications of the empirical findings in relation to industrial and trade policies that may be potentially beneficial for China's transition towards an innovative economy.