Offshore Outsourcing and Productivity: Evidence from Japanese Firm‐level Data Disaggregated by Tasks

This paper examines the relationship of offshoring with productivity, based on the original survey data of Japanese firms. Productivity gains were found in the firms offshoring both manufacturing and service tasks, but not in the firms offshoring only either manufacturing or service tasks. This paper also finds that firms offshoring to various destinations tend to be more productive than non‐offshoring firms. These results suggest that the level of firms' engagement in offshoring is more important for productivity than whether or not firms engage in offshoring.     

Market Leadership Volatility in Japanese Industries

The paper computes the extent of marketleadership volatility by industry, and then examinesthe determinants of volatility in Japanesemanufacturing industries. Volatility varies fromindustry to industry, and changes over time in manyindustries. Concentration coexists with lessvolatility, suggesting that the former has a policysignificance. Concentration change has a significantand positive effect. Exports have avolatility-promoting effect, but imports have noeffect. Industry size tends to decrease volatility.The effect of industry growth is not found.Advertising, R&D and distribution channel have nodefinite effect respectively as well.     

Hepatocellular carcinoma with tumor thrombus in the inferior vena cava and right atrium

Tumor thrombus (TT) in the inferior vena cava (IVC) and right atrium (RA) is rarely encountered. We have diagnosed before death and treated a case of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with TT in the IVC and RA, accompanied by a brain metastasis. The image characteristics on computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and conventional angiography are discussed.     

Non-manipulable division rules in claim problems and generalizations

When resources are divided among agents, the characteristics of the agents are taken into consideration. A simple example is the bankruptcy problem, where the liquidation value of a bankrupt firm is divided among the creditors based on their claims. We characterize division rules under which no group of agents can increase the total amount they receive by transferring their characteristics within the group. By allowing agents’ characteristics to be multi-dimensional and choosing the meaning of variables appropriately, our model can subsume a number of existing and new allocation problems, such as cost sharing, social choice with transferable utilities, income redistribution, bankruptcy with multiple types of assets, probability updating, and probability aggregation. A number of existing and new results in specific problems are obtained as corollaries.     

A Computable General Equilibrium Analysis of Efficiency Improvements at Japanese Ports

In this paper we investigate the system-wide impact of increased efficiency of ports in Japan using a computable general equilibrium model developed for 1995. The Japanese Ministry of Transport has been implementing programs of the Ninth Seven-year Port Development Plan to improve port efficiency. The technological efficiency in the ports reduces the cost of shipping transportation, and the forward and backward linkages of imports and exports introduce some positive gains in the national GDP. Our analysis proves that the spillover effects are substantial on shipping transportation and to a lesser extent on the Japanese economy.     

The efficiency of small manufacturing firms in Japan

It has been suggested that market structure will have an impact on within-industry differentials in efficiency, or cost disadvantages of small firms. To test this hypothesis, this paper examines the effects of market structure on the productivity (relative to industry productivity) of small manufacturing firms in Japan. The results show that market structure elements such as concentration and capital requirements work to the disadvantage of small-firm efficiency. The findings provide support for the hypothesis.     

Diversification and R & D activity in Japanese manufacturing firms

This his paper examines the influence of diversification on R & D intensity in Japanese manufacturing firms. Then alternative definitions of the diversification index are used. The results show that diversification is not a factor favorable to R & D activity. The finding that advertising intensity is positively and significantly related to R & D activity should also be noted.     

The Determinants of Firm Exit in Japanese Manufacturing Industries

This paper presents new evidence on the determinants of firm exits that occurred in Japanese manufacturing industries over the period 1981--1989. Gross-number measure is used for exits. Many structural factors have exerted a definite influence on the extent of exit; across industries, capital intensity and subcontracting relationships have an exit-promoting effect, while profits, industry growth, concentration, and R&D opportunity have a negative relationship with exit. In addition, the minimum efficient size has an inverted-U-shaped relationship. However, export opportunity has only a marginal effect. These results are likely to reflect exits of small business.     

Foreign versus domestic outsourcing: Firm-level evidence on the role of technology

The decision about where to outsource varies across firms and industries. General machinery heavily depends on domestic subcontractors, while outsourcing overseas is prevalent in apparel. Based on firm-level data explicitly distinguishing foreign outsourcing from domestic outsourcing in all manufacturing industries, this paper finds that firms tend to prefer domestic outsourcing to foreign outsourcing when they are R&D-intensive. This finding is consistent with incomplete contracting models, since technologically complex products are likely to require high-quality contracting environment and assembler–supplier proximity. This paper also finds that firms connected with computer networks are actively outsourcing.