Technological intensities in East and Southeast Asian electronics firms: Does network strength matter?

This paper examines the importance of network strength (NS) on the technological intensities (TI) of electronics firms. TI was disentangled into the categories of human resource (HR), process technology (PT) and R&D (RD) intensities, and the differences between foreign and local firms. The results show that firms in Korea and Taiwan endowed with superior NS enjoy significantly higher skill intensity, TI and RD than firms in Malaysia and Thailand, which have inferior NS. There were no obvious differences in HR practices between foreign and local firms in the four countries. Local firms enjoyed higher TI and RD than foreign firms in Taiwan. There was no statistical difference involving all the technological categories between foreign and local firms in Korea. Foreign firms in Malaysia enjoyed statistically superior TI compared with local firms. Local firms in Thailand showed higher TI and PT than foreign firms. TI and RD of firms are strongly correlated with NS, which showed a stronger impact on TI and RD among local rather than foreign firms. The superior NS of Korea and Taiwan has helped firms participate in higher technological activities and pay higher wages than firms in Malaysia and Thailand.     

Botswana: Poverty amid plenty

This paper uses the technological capabilities framework for examining differences in technological intensities and economic performance between foreign and local food and beverage, and textile and garment firms and metal engineering firms in Kenya. Foreign firms had statistically significant higher labour productivity means than local firms in textile and garment manufacturing. Foreign firms were also more export- and technology-intensive than local firms in textile and garment (process technology and R&D) and metal engineering (HR). Foreign firms had higher and statistically significant skills and overall technology (TI) means than local firms in food and beverages. The econometric exercise showed that foreign ownership had a statistically significant and positive relationship with overall technological and HR intensities. In labour productivity, the coefficient of TI was higher in the foreign firms' sample than in the local firms' sample. Local firms had higher value added in domestic than export markets. Export intensity had a positive relationship in the process technology regressions, but an inverse relationship in the HR regressions in the foreign firms' sample. Overall, the statistically significant results suggest that foreign firms' technology, productivity and export intensity levels in economies with weak institutions tend to be superior to local firms.     

Technological Innovation Drivers in Rural Small Food Industries in Iran

The first step in devising the best incentives to support innovation is to investigate factors that affect the development of innovations. This article contributes to exploring such factors in small food industries in the rural areas of Tehran province, Iran. Using a census sampling method, 111 managers of 60 active firms were interviewed. The results showed that in general the level of technological innovation is low in the studied firms. The managers do not find the technological changes successful in bringing benefit to their firms. Even though correlation analysis indicated a complex association matrix between independent variables, only the firm's capacity of production was associated with technological innovation as a dependent variable. Furthermore, the regression analysis revealed that factors which influence technological innovation are the firm's age, formal research and development, fixed capital, and capacity of production. The results of this study were used to derive practical suggestions for managers and policymakers to increase technological innovation in the studied industry.     

Internationalization of innovative capabilities: counter‐evidence from the electronics industry in Malaysia and Brazil

The focus of this paper is the extent to which firms in the electronics industry in Malaysia and Brazil (Manaus) developed significant innovative technological capabilities. By examining whether innovative capabilities have spread to these two late‐industrializing countries, the paper seeks to add new evidence to the debate over internationalization of innovative capabilities and to argue against existing generalizations. Internationalization of innovative capabilities is measured here by the technological capability types and levels built within firms. The framework for capability‐building identifies types and levels of technological capabilities. The paper draws on empirical evidence from 82 electronics firms—transnational corporation subsidiaries and local firms: 53 in Malaysia (25 in Penang and 28 in Klang Valley) and 29 in Manaus (Northern Brazil). Empirical evidence was collected during extensive fieldwork based on different data‐gathering strategies. Both qualitative and quantitative data analysis methods were used. Contrary to common generalizations, the study found that the capabilities of most sampled firms had been upgraded to carry out diverse innovative technological activities. Additionally, these capability‐building efforts were strongly associated with higher capabilities for local decision‐making and control, automation level and efforts to increase exports. The study found firms that innovated to be competitive by reducing costs, being more productive, reducing lead time and producing better products—regardless of whether they were in a domestic market‐oriented country or in an export‐oriented country. Finally, the analysis and framework in this study challenge some existing perspectives on the internationalization of innovative capabilities to the late‐industrializing context.     

Innovation in Agro-Foods: A Comparative Analysis of Value Chains

ABSTRACT

The innovative activity of firms has been linked to the introduction of a new product or process associated with the development or application of new technological knowledge. New products generally contain innovative techniques that increase the quality of goods. New processes are based on the use of new technologies to increase the efficiency of production. However, the exclusive link between technology and innovation has been criticized for various reasons. It provides a restrictive vision considering innovation as part of the manufacturing and services sectors. Innovation in firms affects not only the development and application of new technologies but also the adoption and the reorganization of business processes, internal organization, external relations, and marketing. The literature in the field of management emphasizes the importance of integrating product, process, and organization to translate new ideas into market success. Thus, to obtain a complete picture of the innovative efforts of firms in the agro-food industry, the concept of innovation has been extended to both technological and nontechnological innovations. This analysis provided evidence of innovations used by agro-food firms. It also identified latent demand for future innovation.     

Spatial regulation and international differences in the housebuilding industries

Housebuilding firms vary across the world in size and in the scope of their activities. This variety may seem surprising in an industry with open technologies and ease of entry. While market and technological factors may go some way to explain such differences, much of the causes of variation lie in dissimilarities in regulatory and institutional frameworks. These themes are explored through a comparative analysis of the structure of the residential development industry in Australia, the UK and the USA and in analysis of firm size hierarchies. The firm concentration ratio is much higher in the UK than the other two countries and the reasons may lie in the geography of the country but also in the peculiarities of its planning system.     

Productivity and Structural Heterogeneity in the Brazilian Manufacturing Sector: Trends and Determinants

Structural heterogeneity (SH)—i.e. the existence of marked asymmetries in labour productivity among firms, along with low-productivity firms forming a large share of total employment—plays an important role in development theory. But only recently has the availability of micro data made the rigorous measuring of SH possible. This paper makes compatible different databases on manufacturing production, innovation and micro-social data for Brazil—PIA, RAIS, Secex and PINTEC—for 2000–2008 in order to measure SH and analyse its determinants. First, productivity groups are formed out of the universe of Brazilian manufacturing firms using a k-mean cluster methodology. Second, the variables affecting the productivity group to which each firm belongs are tested using an ordered probit model. The results indicate that increasing returns (captured by the firm's market share, the number of employees in innovative activities, workers' years of schooling and the accumulation of workers' experience), the technological intensity of the industry, learning by exporting and public support to R&D have driven productivity growth and reproduced SH through time, as predicted by development and evolutionary theories.     

A thing of the past? Household surveys in a rapidly evolving (agricultural) data landscape: Insights from the LSMS‐ISA

Household surveys, a pivotal component of every country's national statistical system, continue to be criticized and praised in equal manner. While recognizing their limitations, it is clear that certain types of data must continue to be collected through household surveys, preferably in an integrated manner with other data sources. This is particularly true in the agricultural space for which household and farm surveys will be critical both to collect primary data as well as to validate alternative data sources. Recent methodological gains and technological innovations offer a unique opportunity to address many of the shortcomings of agricultural data. In this article, we briefly describe select examples of such methodological and technological changes, drawing from the Living Standards Measurement Study‐Integrated Surveys on Agriculture, a survey program aimed at improving the availability, quality, and relevance of agricultural data in multitopic, multipurpose household surveys.     

Cross-licensing agreements in presence of technological improvements

This study investigates the relationship between technologies that firms expect to achieve after cross-licensing (CL) and their incentives for signing CL agreements in a multiproduct-firm setting. Results indicate that if markets are bounded substantial technological improvements that result in removal of firms’ current products from the market may in fact reduce firms’ incentives to negotiate a CL deal. This may also give firms an incentive to agree upon a tacit collusion by which they limit the utilization of CL technologies. However, when markets are unbounded, the prospect of capturing new markets and charging royalty fees can significantly increase firms’ incentives for CL. The rationale behind our modeling assumptions is discussed using example from agriculture biotechnology industry.     

Contract farming,contract design and smallholder livelihoods*

Contract farming has gained in importance in many developing countries. Previous studies analysed effects of contracts on smallholder farmers’ welfare, yet mostly without considering that different types of contractual relationships exist. Here, we examine associations between contract farming and farm household income in the oil palm sector of Ghana, explicitly differentiating between two types of contracts, namely simple marketing contracts and more comprehensive resource-providing contracts. Moreover, we look at different income sources to better understand how both contracts are linked to farmers’ livelihood strategies. We use cross-sectional survey data and regression models. Issues of endogeneity are addressed through measuring farmers' willingness-to-participate in contracts and using this indicator as an additional covariate. Farmers with both types of contracts have significantly higher household incomes than farmers without a contract, yet with notable differences in terms of the income sources. Farmers with a marketing contract allocate more household labour to off-farm activities and thus have higher off-farm income. In contrast, farmers with a resource-providing contract have larger oil palm plantations and thus higher farm incomes. The findings suggest that the two contract types are associated with different livelihood strategies and that disaggregated analysis of different income sources is important to better understand possible underlying mechanisms.     

Global Value Chains and Technological Capabilities: A Framework to Study Learning and Innovation in Developing Countries

This paper presents a critical review of the global value chain (GVC) literature in light of the “technological capabilities” approach to innovation in less-developed countries (LDCs). Participation in GVC is beneficial for firms in LDCs, which are bound to source technology internationally. However, the issues of learning and technological efforts at the firm level remain largely hidden in the GVC literature. We propose a shift in the empirical and theoretical agenda, arguing that research should integrate the analysis of the endogenous process of technological capability development, including specific firm-level efforts, and of the mechanisms allowing knowledge to flow within and between different global value chains into the GVC literature.     

Informal government preferences and asymmetric land allocation in China

Whether governments have informal preferences toward firms when allocating land resources and the effects of such preferences on regional development remain unclear, particularly in countries with weak formal institutions. This paper investigates the government’s informal preferences in land allocations in China. Substantial evidence is found that politically connected firms are preferred to win land auctions at lower prices due to two different reasons. These preferences are informally achieved through a two-stage auction mechanism rather than formal bid preference programs, and result in the asymmetrical allocation of urban land in terms of land quality, quantity, and price, across politically and non-politically connected firms in China. The state-owned enterprises are allocated poor quality land parcels at 55% land price discounts. In comparison, the manager-based politically connected firms are allocated regular land parcels at 6% price discounts, and other firms without connections with the government are allocated regular land at higher prices.     

Hegemony,Technological Innovation and Corporate Identities: 50 Years of Agricultural Revolutions in Argentina

The technological changes that have occurred since the mid‐1960s in Argentine agriculture – first the Green Revolution and then the Agribusiness Paradigm – have been conceptualized as revolutionary not only with regard to their productivity improvements but also because they brought with them a change of mentality. Based on two different business conceptions, during each period an agrarian elite led the ‘revolutionary’ process, offering a technological response as the means of guaranteeing agriculture's ‘survival’ after various crises. For each period, we can identify a correspondence between the status given to technology, the conception of business and the type of government regulation. This paper analyses how the proposition of a ‘technological revolution’ corresponds to the construction of the ideological leadership through which the agrarian bourgeoisie managed to orientate agrarian development.     

农民工需求变动的影响因素及其差异性的实证分析——基于用工企业的调研数据

本文运用广东省和江西省2008—2010年189家用工企业的调研数据,通过建立Panel Data模型,从企业视角实证分析了农民工需求的影响因素及其差异性。研究表明,政府给予企业的优惠政策、企业销售收入对农民工需求的影响为正,而企业技术进步对农民工需求的影响为负。从企业不同市场导向、不同所有制结构两个角度对农民工需求的影响因素进行差异性分析表明,与国内市场导向型企业相比,出口导向型企业的年销售收入越高,对农民工需求的促进作用会更强;相对于私营企业或外资企业而言,政府给予其他所有制企业的优惠政策对促进农民工需求发挥的作用会更大。     

Energy Productivity Growth in the Dutch Greenhouse Industry

Profitability of Dutch greenhouse firms is largely dependent on energy costs, and policy makers focus on reducing the use of energy by these firms. This article uses Russell measures of TE to develop indicators of energy productivity growth. Results show that energy productivity grew by 2.8% annually in the period 1976–95, with technical progress being the key factor driving the process of productivity growth. From this we conclude that policies aiming at enhancing the adoption of technological innovations are more effective, if due attention is paid to measures for improving TE.     

The impact of seed industry concentration on innovation: a study of US biotech market leaders

Agricultural research drives increases in agricultural productivity, and the number of private agricultural input firms has been declining. The empirical relationship between the number of firms doing applied biotechnology crop research and the amount of research output they produce is investigated in a research profit function model. Increases in seed industry concentration have reduced biotech research intensity in the United States in the 1990s. Concentration and research are simultaneously determined and are influenced by the appropriability of research results and the state of technological opportunity.     

Consumer Interest in Fish Information and Labelling

Abstract

Consumers' cognitive mechanisms and their perception of product properties are markedly affected by information. This paper focuses on consumers' information needs and interests related to fish. The objective is to explore consumers' use of internal and external information sources and their use of information cues with regard to fish. Qualitative exploratory research was performed in May 2004 through focus group discussions in two European countries: Belgium and Spain. Personal sources are found as the most important information sources with regard to fish. Although a majority of consumers use mandatory information cues on fish labels, they express doubts whether information provided on the labels can be trusted. People who are more experienced and have higher familiarity with fish, seem to be more efficient insearching and using information. Instead of providing one message for the consumers, segmentation and targeted information provision is recommended.     

矿业城市产业用地信息提取及其演变规律研究——以河南省焦作市为例

文章以河南省焦作市为例,探讨了产业用地信息提取的技术方法,在此基础上,建立了以数据融合、神经网络分类和人机交互解译为主要内容的研究区产业用地提取的技术流程。以遥感影像和城区基础地理数据为主要数据源,研究了焦作市产业用地结构空间分布特点;总结了焦作市产业用地空间变化的特点及其演变规律,并就产业用地与产业结构进行了相关分析。     

Recessionary period activities in forest sector firms: Impacts on innovativeness

The Global Financial Crisis (GFC) provides a unique setting to study innovativeness and customer orientation in forest sector firms. Considerable research has focused generally on innovativeness in forest sector firms, but little attention has been given to the actions of firms to the chaotic market environment during the GFC. Our objective is to clarify how a customer orientation and the practice of developing new markets during a market downturn results in enhanced knowledge-based resources, manifested as increased innovativeness. Our longitudinal design includes data representing 2012 and 2015 from 89, US-based forest sector firms. Responding firms are more focused on process than product innovativeness. During the GFC, responding firms concentrated more on foreign market development than on domestic market development. Firms with a stronger customer orientation in response to the GFC realized higher innovativeness post-GFC. Also, firms actively developing new foreign markets in response to the GFC realized higher process innovativeness. Our results support a stronger customer focus for forest sector firms as it translates to increased innovativeness and potentially improved product development. In addition, allocating resources to foreign market development during financial downturns can be a strategy to build innovativeness.     

On the market risk of securitized timberlands

Over 10 million acres of timberlands in the United States have been securitized through Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) in recent years. Publicly traded timber REITs have better liquidity and tax efficiency than private ownership, but at the same time, they are exposed to higher market risk as public firms. In this study, copula modeling is employed to assess the joint distribution between daily returns of five timber REITs and a stock market index. Both constant and time-varying symmetrized Joe-Clayton copulas are estimated to evaluate the dependence of timber REITs on the equity market from 1994 to 2010. In most cases, there exist lower tail dependence for market stresses, upper tail dependence for market booms, and tail asymmetry between individual firms and the market. On average, the dependence measure becomes larger after a firm is converted into a REIT. Each firm has smaller volatility of tail dependence after the conversion, except for Plum Creek. These findings reveal that the REIT structure has introduced non-diversifiable market risk into its ownership, and thus the diversification benefit of publicly traded timber REITs in a portfolio may be limited.