日本地方政府预算研究与启示

日本以地方财政计划作为地方政府预算的中心环节,并将地方税返还制度列入该计划,以保障和调整地方财源,满足地方公共支出需要。针对目前出现的地方财力不足,以及中央财政对地方财政补充不足的现实状况,日本正在进行三位一体的地方分权改革与财政体制改革。日本地方政府预算制度与改革的经验与教训对于切实推进中国的分税制改革,发挥地方政府财政计划功能、改革政府财政架构、建立公开透明的政府财政预算体系以及制定科学的地方财政保证方法等方面有着重要的启示作用。     

MARKET COMPETITION,R&D AND FIRM PROFITS IN ASYMMETRIC OLIGOPOLY*

We investigate a Cournot model with strategic R&D investments wherein efficient low‐cost firms compete against less efficient high‐cost firms. We find that an increase in the number of high‐cost firms can stimulate R&D by the low‐cost firms, while it always reduces R&D by the high‐cost firms. More importantly, this force can be strong enough to compensate for the loss that arises from more intense market competition: the low‐cost firms' profits may indeed increase with the number of high‐cost firms. An implication of this result is far‐reaching, as it gives low‐cost firms an incentive to help, rather than harm, high‐cost competitors. We relate this implication to a practice known as open knowledge disclosure, especially Ford's strategy of disclosing its know‐how publicly and extensively at the beginning of the 20th century.     

A CURRENT JAPANESE INTERPRETATION OF MAX WEBER

The author tries to clarify some characteristics in the context of the intellectual history of Japan with regard to how and what aspects of Max Weber's theories have been introduced by Japanese social scientists. Max Weber's influence on Japan is so great that it is impossible to discuss the whole of it. Accordingly, in this article, the author refers only to a few social scientists who are notable from the viewpoint of some important problems, such as “overcoming modernity,’ etc. Some aspects which are peculiar to the interpretation of Weber's theories on Oriental society in Japan are dealt with in relation to the author's interests in the last part of this article.