Allocative inefficiency and measures of market power

Conclusion This paper has shown that under conditions of both linear and constant price elasticity demand functions, market power as measured by the Lerner index and profit rates may easily move in the opposite direction of the welfare losses from monopoly. This means that changes in monopoly power, as measured by either Lerner indexes or profit rates, are not adequate to predict qualitative changes in allocative inefficiency.More (less) market power does not necessarily imply more (less) allocative inefficiency whether one is comparing different industries at a point in time or a given industry at different points in time. For these reasons, interpretation of the relation between market power as measured by the Lerner index or profit rates and market performance must proceed with caution.     

Local government taxation: An analysis of administrative cost inefficiency

Local governments in Indonesia administer taxes inefficiently. The average cost of local tax administration as a percentage of revenue generated is estimated to be over 50%. There is, however, a wide variation in administrative inefficiency across local governments. The estimation of a stochastic cost frontier model suggests that administrative cost inefficiency increases significantly as fiscal transfers from the centre rise; the investigation also demonstrates that local governments with elected executives are no more administratively cost efficient than those with appointed heads. The simple and complex measures of cost inefficiency yield broadly similar results concerning the level and variation of inefficiency across local governments, but can offer significantly different estimates of the relative inefficiency of individual local governments. This poses a dilemma for the central government in monitoring and evaluating local government tax administration performance.     

The effect of tariff reductions on firm size and firm turnover in canadian manufacturing

Using panel data on 81 Canadian manufacturing industries over the 1983–1996 period, the authors show that the estimated impact of recent tariff cuts was a positive and significant increase in the exit rate of firms. Supplementing this finding with recent research showing, that exiting firms tend to be less productive than those that survive, this provides support for recent trade models asserting that increased exposure to international trade induces the exit of least efficient firms, thereby contributing to productivity growth. JEL no. F1, L6     

Persistent and transient inefficiency: Explaining the low efficiency of Chinese big banks

A vast literature shows that China's five largest state-owned banks (the Big Five) suffer from low cost efficiency. We offer a new explanation of this situation, by decomposing overall efficiency of Chinese banks into two parts: persistent and transient efficiency. Using the model of Kumbhakar, Lien, and Hardaker (2014) based on the stochastic frontier approach, we measure persistent and transient efficiency for a large sample of 166 Chinese banks over the period 2008–2015. We show that the lower efficiency of China's Big Five banks is almost entirely due to low persistent cost efficiency, indicating structural problems. On the contrary, the Big Five banks transient efficiency is similar to other Chinese banks, reflecting a good aptitude to minimize their costs in the short-term. Our findings support the view that major structural reforms are needed to enhance the efficiency of China's Big Five banks.     

A spatial autoregressive stochastic frontier model for panel data incorporating a model of technical inefficiency

By integrating Battese and Coelli’s (1995) model and the spatial autoregressive model (SAR), a spatial autoregressive stochastic frontier model for panel data is developed. The main feature of this frontier model is a spatial lag term of explained variables and the joint structure of a production possibility frontier with a model of technical inefficiency. The model addresses both spatial dependence and heteroskedastic technical inefficiency. This study applies maximum likelihood methods considering the endogenous spatial lag term. The proposed model nests several existing models. Further, an empirical analysis using data on the Japanese manufacturing industry is conducted and the existing models are tested against the proposed model, which is found to be statistically supported. The findings suggest that estimates in the existing spatial and non-spatial models may exhibit bias because of lack of determinants of technical inefficiency, as well as a spatial lag. This bias also affects the technical efficiency score and its ranking.     

Distinguishing the two forms of the constant percentage learning curve model

Abstract. There is often evidence of confusion between two forms of the constant percentage learning curve model: the cumulative average and the individual unit forms. Failure to distinguish between the two models can lead to their misuse and to potentially serious errors of estimation. A precise statement of the difference between the two clarifies the errors of misspecification. This note provides an analytical comparsion of the two models and addresses empirical estimation issues. Résumé. On a souvent la preuve de la confusion entre deux formules de modèle de la courbe d'apprentissage à pourcentage constant: celle de la moyenne cumulative et celle de l'unité individuelle. Le fait de ne pas distinguer les deux modèles peut conduire à une mauvaise utilisation et éventuellement à de sérieuses erreurs d'estimation. Un examen précis de la différence entre les deux peut clarifier les erreurs de spécification. Cet article présente une comparaison analytique des deux modèles et traite des questions d'estimation empirique.     

A global perspective on railway inefficiency and the rise of state ownership, 1880-1912

The rise of state ownership was one of the most significant policy changes in the railway sector in the early 20th century. This paper estimates the cost inefficiency of railway sectors across countries using stochastic frontier models and examines whether the rise of state ownership affected inefficiency. The results show that the trends in inefficiency differed substantially across countries from the 1880s to 1912. They also show that inefficiency increased with greater nationalizations and decreased with greater state railway construction. A counterfactual analysis suggests that the rise of state ownership contributed to lower inefficiency in most countries, but the effects within countries varied depended on whether state ownership increased through nationalizations or new construction.     

统一城乡税制的路径探究

本文对农业税取消后,如何构建统一的城乡税制进行探讨,提出了建设性意见,并指出推行城乡税制一体化要有一个相当长的过渡时期。     

货物原产地规则中的从价百分比标准问题研究

货物原产地规则通常是指为确定货物原产地而实施的普遍适用的法律、法规和行政裁决。从价百分比标准是判定实质性改变的标准之一,是货物原产地规则中的重要问题,通过规定从价百分比标准,可保证一定的区域内增值,使区域内的相关产业得到保护。     

Sectoral effects of reductions in NATO military expenditures in the major industrialized and developing countries

We use the Michigan Model of World Production and Trade to assess the sectoral effects of (1) a 25 percent unilateral reduction of military expenditures in the individual NATO countries and (2) a 25 percent multilateral reduction of military expenditures in all of the NATO countries combined. Our principal findings suggest that the overall effects of the unilateral and multilateral reductions are not substantial and that the results of the two reductions are qualitatively similar. The sectoral results, which are also broadly similar in the two experiments, suggest that sectors such as basic metals and metal products, durable goods, and community, social, and personal services might be in need of transitional adjustment assistance for displaced workers in the event that the reductions in military expenditures would in fact be carried out.     

悬挂点匀速运动下弹簧摆的研究

文章利用拉格朗日方程建立了弹簧摆运动的动力学方程,并运用Matlab软件进行数字模拟,描绘了悬挂点做匀速运动时弹簧摆坐标随时间变化的演化曲线、运动轨迹、运动相图,分析了其运动情况,得出了更为直观的运动规律。该研究有一定的理论意义和实际价值。     

On uniform convergence of undiscounted optimal programs in the Mitra–Wan forestry model: The strictly concave case

In this paper, we show that the 1986 Mitra–Wan result establishing asymptotic convergence of maximal programs to the unique golden-rule forest in the case of undiscounted, strictly concave felicity functions can be strengthened, in the same setting, to the  uniform  asymptotic convergence of  optimal  programs to the unique golden-rule forest. We work with a notationally reformulated version of the model that may have independent interest.     

以经济增加值(EVA)作为财务管理职能的统一目标研究

设计经济增加值(EVA)的初衷在于企业管理层的绩效评价和激励薪酬制度设计,但EVA在财务管理中的应用尚未得以充分发掘。该文提出利用EVA的易计量、易操作等属性,将其设定为企业财务管理各具体职能的共同目标,并从筹资、投资和股利政策等多角度论证了以EVA作为统一目标的可行性,     

局部放电对配电开关的影响及应对措施

电力设备运行中过量的局部放电会导致设备局部发热,缩短电力设备绝缘使用寿命,严重的会导致绝缘击穿,毁坏电力设备。控制设备的局部放电水平对提高电力设备的可靠性、保障设备安全运行具有重要的意义。文章分析了局部放电的机理、产生的原因,并给出了一些有效的应对措施。     

Hogdges-Ajine test for hypothesis of uniform distribution of China consumer price index from 2001 to 2005

The uniformity of China consumer price index （CCPI） could be tested by using the Hodges-Ajine testing method. The result that population is submitting to uniform distribution is obtained. Correspondingly, the uniformity of CCPI indicates that the general price level has been stable in the past five years. Finally, the reasons of the uniformity are analyzed.