Productivity Gains from Offshore Outsourcing: Evidence from the Chinese Manufacturing Industry

Using the Cobb–Douglas production function and vertical specialization share, the present paper measures the productivity spillover effects of offshore outsourcing in the Chinese manufacturing industry. We examine different production factors and the degree of openness by dividing the Chinese manufacturing industry into five major categories: capital‐intensive business, technological‐intensive business, labor‐intensive business, open business and non‐open business. The results show that offshore outsourcing is positively associated with productivity in the Chinese manufacturing industry as a whole, but less so in labor‐intensive industries and more in capital‐intensive industries. Moreover, the positive impact of outsourcing on productivity is slightly higher in open industries than in non‐open industries. These results shed light on the differential spillover effects of offshore outsourcing on productivity. Our findings suggest that outsourcing structure is important to China's long‐run competitive advantage. China's policy‐makers should encourage further offshore capital‐intensive and technology‐intensive activities and focus more on outward‐oriented offshore businesses.     

贸易开放与工资差距——基于中国制造业行业面板数据的实证研究

本文在中国贸易非均衡发展现状基础上,构建计量模型,从商品价格机制、技术进步机制和生产率进步机制角度探讨中国贸易开放影响中国制造业行业间工资差距的具体传导机制。研究发现:(1)就制造业总体而言,贸易主要通过技术进步机制和劳动生产率机制来影响行业工资,造成行业间工资差距的扩大。(2)具体而言,劳动力密集型行业中,进出口贸易、资本密集度和劳动生产率共同作用于行业工资差距;在资本密集型行业中,进口贸易、资本密集度和劳动生产率是扩大工资差距的动因;在技术密集型行业中,出口贸易是工资差距扩大的主导因素。     

The Effect of Public Infrastructure on Cost Structure and Performance of Chinese Provinces*

This paper estimates a translog cost function for 29 Chinese provinces between 1979 and 2018. The results imply that investment in public infrastructure reduces costs in all provinces. Comparing the estimated rate of return to infrastructure with the rate of return to private capital, our results indicate underinvestment for the initial period after the economic reforms; however, after 2010 our results show overinvestment in infrastructure. Infrastructure capital is a substitute input to labor, private capital and intermediate inputs. Finally, public infrastructure growth contributes positively to labor and total factor productivity growth, but the effect is small. The growth of private capital and intermediate inputs are the most important factors that boost the growth of labor productivity.     

Aging labor,ICT capital,and productivity in Japan and Korea

This study examines how aging affects labor productivity using industry-level data of Japan and Korea. The analysis shows that, for both Japan and Korea, aging has positive effects on labor productivity when older workers are working in industries with a large share of information and communication technology (ICT) in the capital stock. We also find that, on average, older workers exert positive effects on labor productivity across all industries when they are low-educated in Japan and high-educated in Korea. In addition, a complementary effect between ICT capital and older workers is observed for both high- and low-educated workers in Japan but only for low-educated workers in Korea. The complementarity between ICT and old workers existed in both manufacturing and services industries of Korea and Japan.     

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.     

The Role of Human Capital in Economic Development: Evidence from Taiwan

The use of Taiwanese industrial data to investigate two potentially important roles of human capital on long-run economic growth (i.e. factor accumulation and technology progress), we find that human capital accounts for 46% of output growth in aggregate manufacturing industry and from 23 to 84% in two-digit industries. Significant knowledge spillover effects were found within Taiwan's manufacturing sector. For aggregate manufacturing, a roughly 29% of total rate of return to education gives a private return of 7% while the external knowledge spillover effect is 22%. For the two-digit industries, the inter-industry effect of education measures two to three times its intra-industry effect. Contrary to the Lau-Young proposition, we find that technology change in terms of knowledge spillover contributes 39% to the output growth of Taiwan's aggregate manufacturing and from 12 to 42% to that of the two-digit industries. Our results also suggest that, in the presence of externalities, growth accounting based on macro data may be misleading in interpreting the sources of growth.
In addition, the case study of Taiwan suggests that opening trade broadens opportunities, and hence increases the return on human-capital investment. However, our estimation results also suggest that in terms of capturing the growth benefits from trade, threshold levels of human capital exist in most industries.     

资本深化对中国制造业劳动生产率的影响:市场选择与政府行为

文章基于市场选择与政府行为的视角,将资本深化分解为工资上涨引致的资本深化和政府投资引致的资本深化,利用2000-2014年中国制造业28个分行业的面板数据,实证检验了资本深化对中国制造业劳动生产率提升的影响。研究结果表明,工资上涨引致的资本深化能显著的促进中国制造业劳动生产率的提升,而政府投资引致的资本深化却对中国制造业劳动生产率的提升产生了不利的影响。进一步的研究发现,政府投资引致的资本深化与中国制造业劳动生产率之间呈现出显著的"倒U型"关系,其临界值为政府投资引致的资本深化达到0.057左右,目前越过该临界值的制造业行业有20个,且主要集中在重化工业制造业。而未越过该临界值的制造业行业有8个,主要分布于轻工业制造业。这一研究结果为中国"去库存、去产能"的供给侧结构性改革提供必要的经验支持。     

我国公共基础设施的规模效应及结构效应分析——基于1996-2010的制造业行业数据

基于三要素的成本函数,本文利用1996—2010年20个制造业行业的面板数据,考察了以能源、交通以及邮电通讯为代表的公共基础设施对产业部门的要素投入数量以及要素投入结构的影响。结果表明:公共基本设施投入不仅具有降低行业平均成本的作用,而且对行业成本结构具有显著影响。相对于劳动投入,要素投入更加向资本和中间品倾斜。     

地方化经济、城市化经济与劳动生产率——基于中国制造业四位数行业的实证研究

本文基于2003年中国四位数行业制造业数据,实证分析了产业外部性的两种重要形式——地方化经济和城市化经济对劳动生产率的影响。我们发现,从整个制造业来讲,地方化经济和城市化经济都促进了劳动生产率的提高。同时,我们就地方化经济和城市化经济是否存在产业间的差异进行了实证分析,发现地方化经济在大部分产业都发挥显著的促进作用,而仅有少数技术含量相对高的产业支持城市化经济。     

Public capital formation and labor productivity growth in Mexico

This paper addresses the important question whether public investment spending on economic infrastructure enhances economic growth and labor productivity in Mexico. Following the lead of the endogenous growth literature, it presents a modified production function which explicitly includes the positive or negative externality effects generated by additions to the public capital stock. Using cointegration analysis, the paper proceeds to estimate a dynamic labor productivity function for the 1955–94 period that incorporates the impact of the growth rate in the stocks of both private and public capital (as opposed to the flows) and the economically active population (EAP) (rather than the rate of population growth). The results suggest that (lagged) increases in public investment spending on economic infrastructure—as opposed to overall public investment spending—have a positive and highly significant effect on the rate of labor productivity growth. In addition, the estimates suggest that increases in government consumption expenditures may have a negative effect on the rate of labor productivity growth, thus suggesting that the composition of government spending may also play an important role in determining the rate of labor productivity growth. Finally, the findings call into question the politically expedient policy in many Latin American countries of disproportionately reducing public capital expenditures on economic and social infrastructure to meet targeted reductions in the fiscal deficit as a proportion of GDP.     

东道国交通运输能力与中国企业跨国并购:基于生产率调节效应的视角

文章将东道国交通运输能力和生产率引入理论模型,并基于宏观和微观层面数据,研究东道国交通基础设施对中国企业跨国并购完成率的影响机制,实证结果表明:高交通运输能力国家的企业为中国企业并购所青睐,尤其是水路运输;劳动生产率较高的国家的企业对中国资本吸引力并不显著,但东道国交通运输能力与劳动生产率的双向互动却明显促进了中国企业跨国并购,而且不同行业劳动生产率的调节效应不尽相同,服务业劳动生产率引起的间接调节效应最大,其次是工业,最后是农业。这对于有效促进中国企业成功"出海"并实现全球资本区域结构优化具有现实价值。     

基于Malmquist指数的装备制造业创新效率及影响因素分析

在保持装备制造业经济总量不断增长的同时,如何有效的提高行业效率,已成为制造业发展中迫切需要解决的战略性问题。本文将装备制造业创新效率及其影响因素纳入一个完整的理论-实证分析框架,运用Malmquist指数法对我国装备制造业全要素生产率增长状况进行了测算,并把全要素生产率(TFP)的增长构成分解为技术进步和技术效率变化两个部分,并对影响因素采用面板模型进行GLS回归。研究结果发现,2000—2010年我国装备制造业年平均增长率为11%,从分行业的角度来看,平均增长最快的是通用设备制造业。通过省级面板数据对我国装备制造业创新效率的影响因素进行分析,回归结果显示,对TFP影响程度最大的因素是技术水平和人力资本存量。TFP影响系数最显著的地区为沿海地区,其次为中部地区、东北地区和西部地区。行业技术水平、地区经济发展水平以及行业开放程度的回归系数为正,人力资本存量的回归系数为负。最后,对提高装备制造业创新效率提出政策性建议。     

FDI对我国电子工业生产率的行业内溢出效应研究——以1996—2001年43个细分行业为例

本文考察了外资对中国电子工业劳动生产率的影响。利用1996—2001年期间电子行业的9大部门和43个细分行业的面板数据,并按照无形资产比率、出口比率和国有资本比率对43个细分行业进行了分组检验,我们发现,1996—2001年期间中国电子工业的劳动生产率呈现明显的外商直接投资的溢出效应,并且在不同的行业呈现较大的波动。在无形资产比率高、出口比率高、国有资本比率高的行业,外资对劳动生产率的促进作用显著,而在国有资本比率低、技术含量低的行业,外资对劳动生产率的促进作用不显著。国有企业在促进劳动生产率提高方面具有积极作用,说明国营企业引进外资是一种长期有效的学习跨国公司经验的途径。而且,跨国公司通常被高生产率的电子行业所吸引,在这些行业溢出效应明显存在,但对于一些外资比率低的电子行业,这种正溢出效应不显著。

Abstract：

This paper examines the effect of foreign direct investment（FDI）on the labor productivity of China’s electronics industry. Using panel data of 9 major sectors and 43 sub-sectorsof the electronics industry during the period 1996—2001,and doing group test according to the ratio of intangible assets,the export ratio and the state-owned capital ratio of the 43 sub-sectors,we find that during 1996—2001,labor productivity of the Chinese electronics industry showed significant spillover effects of FDI and large fluctuations in different industries. In industries that have high intangible assets ratio,high export ratio and high state-owned capital ratio,FDI played a more significant role in promoting labor productivity than in industries that have low state—owned capital ratio and low technology contents. State-owned enterprises has a positive effect in promoting labor productivity,indicating that introducing foreign investment is an effective long term route to learn transnational corporations’ experience for state-owned enterprises. Moreover,transnational corporations are always attracted to higher productivity sub-sectors,implying significant spillover effects in these industries,while in sub-sectors with low rate of foreign invest-ment,the spillover effect is not significant.     

基于DEA-Malmquist指数法的宁夏制造业全要素生产率分析研究

运用2009-2018年10个行业的面板数据,使用数据包络分析（DEA）和Malmquist指数法的合成模型对宁夏回族自治区制造业及其十个细分行业的综合效率和全要素生产率变化进行分析。运用软件DEAP2.1进行数据的动态分析,得出了宁夏制造业生产率指数按不同时期和不同行业的分解。结果表明：宁夏制造业生产率年均增长为1.1%,而技术效率和规模效率出现年均0.6%和1.4%的衰退,对生产率产生了负面影响。因此,为了保证宁夏制造业生产率的增长,本文结合Malmquist指数法的分析结果从政府层面、企业层面和产业层面三个方面提出了合理的建议。     

Lumpy investments, factor adjustments, and labour productivity

This paper describes firms’ output and factor demandsbefore, during, and after episodes of lumpy investment. By usinga rich employer–employee panel data set for two manufacturingindustries and one service industry, we focus on simultaneousvariations in output, capital, materials, man hours, labourproductivity, and the skill composition and hourly cost of labour.Investment spikes are followed by roughly proportional changesin sales, labour, and materials, and significant increases incapital intensity. The changes in labour productivity that areassociated with the investment spikes are small, which indicatesthat productivity improvements are not related to instantaneoustechnological change through investment spikes. Focusing onsectoral differences, capital adjustments are found to be smootherin the service industry than in the two manufacturing industrieswhich may be related to differences in labour intensities betweenthe industries.     

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     

Public capital and small firm performance

Previous research on the role of public capital (infrastructure) in private production has emphasized potential complementarities between public and private capital at an aggregate level. Presumably such effects, if they exist, arise from benefits enjoyed by individual units of production. Because of the potential for them to be location-specific or capital constrained, it is conceivable that small businesses may benefit disproportionately from public capital. Tests using financial data for 871 small firms from 1992–96 indicate a positive and statistically significant elasticity between private labor productivity and the level of public capital in the area where the firms are located. Such a positive elasticity provides further evidence that public and private capital are complementary inputs into production and has important policy implications.This research has been supported through a grant from the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership, the support for which the authors gratefully acknowledge.     

长三角两业融合对服务业全要素生产率的影响

随着数字技术的发展,先进制造业与现代服务业之间的边界逐渐模糊,两业融合发展成为提升服务业生产率进而促进经济增长的重要方式。利用耦合协调模型和DEA（数据包络分析）-Malmquist指数法分别对长三角地区两业融合水平和服务业全要素生产率进行测度,实证两业融合对服务业全要素生产率的正向作用,且主要通过两业融合对技术进步的促进作用来实现。     

Assessment of the effects of infrastructure investment under the belt and road initiative

Based on the estimated effect of infrastructure investment on total factor productivity (TFP) enhancing and trade costs reducing, this paper uses the data from Asian Development Bank to numerically assess the effects of Asian nations' infrastructure investment under the Belt and Road Initiative within the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) model, and the results show that most countries or regions' economic growth, welfare, foreign trade, and trade terms are promoted in varying degrees. However, some countries (regions) have suffered. Additionally, the existing division of labor and trade patterns between developed economies and developing countries somehow consolidated because of changes in trade. In addition, China's industrial transformation and upgrading will benefit from the infrastructure investment under the Belt and Road Initiative, namely, the traditional industries slowdown or decline and high-tech manufacturing and service industries speed up, along with the optimization of factor allocation among industries.     

Financing China’s cotton textile industry: 1890–1936

The cotton textile industry was the primary source of Britain’s industrial revolution and Japan’s economic takeoff. The Chinese domestic mechanized cotton textile industry experienced a boom during the interwar period and became the leading industry in the manufacturing sector, although it failed to gain domestic leadership against Japanese funded firms. There is a debate on the role of external finance on firm growth both in the contemporary context and historical cotton textile industry context. The literature offers several competing hypotheses on the relationship between capital and industry growth such as “modernization”, “oppression” and “efficiency” argument. Our empirical results using firm level data between return of capital and the size of the capital indicate a clear positive effect of external finance on firm growth. This supports the “modernization” hypothesis and suggests that the causes of the mediocre performance of the Chinese-owned spinners relative to Japanese mills may have been mismanagement, undercapitalization, lack of reinvestment incentives, and low labor productivity etc.