scholarly journals The Impact of Public Grants on Firm-Level Productivity: Findings from the Czech Food Industry

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 552 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ondřej Dvouletý ◽  
Ivana Blažková

Studying the effects of public entrepreneurship and small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) policies on productivity (i.e., technological efficiency) is important, because the investment policies primarily aim to reduce allocation inefficiencies, enable usage of economies of scale, promote new production methods and technological development. We reviewed the recently published studies, and we show that they often lack fundamental information, such as a sample description and numbers of supported and non-supported firms. Keeping in mind the importance of transparent and rigorous empirical evaluations, we evaluated the effects of investment support from the European Regional and Development Fund (ERDF) on the productivity of the firms operating in the Czech food processing industry two years after the end of the programme. Methodologically, we apply the propensity score matching approach (PSM) combined with a difference in differences approach (DID) based on the firm-level data accounting for 157 firms (i.e., 77.3% of all beneficiaries within the industry) and a control sample of 1224 firms that have not been supported by the intervention. We use three measures of productivity—production efficiency, labour productivity and total factor productivity (TFP). The obtained findings showed that investment subsidy had a positive impact on labour productivity of supported firms. However, the effects on TFP were negative. The impact on production efficiency indicator was proven to be inconclusive. It follows from the results that the productivity of subsidised firms did not improve through an internal increase in efficiency (efficiency of the use of inputs), which indicates no significant technological change. The subsidy decision-making processes should be more careful and transparent to ensure allocating resources only to the projects with growth potential.

2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Martina Novotná ◽  
Tomáš Volek ◽  
Michael Rost ◽  
Jaroslav Vrchota

The goal of this paper is to investigate the impact of technology investments on production efficiency in manufacturing companies and how different these relationships are for low-technology and high-technology companies. The empirical part was based on the analysis of 2,848 large, small and medium-sized Czech companies by using Bayesian networks (BNs). The results show that technological investments have the greatest positive impact on the growth of labour productivity and on a decline in labour intensity in low technology enterprises. The technological investments have a positive impact on labour productivity growth in high-technology enterprises, but at the same time, the technological investments have an impact on the increase of labour intensity. On the contrary, the influence of investment growth was insignificant on the indicators of material and services intensity. Technologically intensive investments have a different impact on small, mediumsized and on large enterprises. The reaction of large companies depends on the category of technology intensity in contrast to small and medium-size enterprises.


ABSTRACT The present study was undertaken to explore the evolution of the impact of firm-level performance on employment level and wages in the Indian organized manufacturing sector over the period 1989-90 to 2013-14. One of the major components of the economic reform package was the deregulation and de-licensing in the Indian organized manufacturing sector. The impact of firm-level performance on employment and wages were estimated for Indian organized manufacturing sector in major sub-sectors in India during the period from 1989-90 to 2013-14 of the various variables namely profitability ratio, total factor productivity change, technical change, technical efficiency, openness (export-import), investment intensity, raw material intensity and FECI in total factor productivity index, technical efficiency, and technical change. The study exhibited that all explanatory variables except profitability ratio and technical change cost had a positive impact on the employment level. Out of eight variables, four variables such as net of foreign equity capital, investment intensity, TFPCH, and technical efficiency change showed a positive impact on wages and salary ratio and rest of the four variables such as openness intensity, technology acquisition index, profitability ratio, and technical change had negative impact on wages and salary ratio. In this context, the profit ratio should be distributed as per the marginal rule of economics such as the marginal productivity of labour and capital.


Südosteuropa ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 505-529
Author(s):  
Kujtim Zylfijaj ◽  
Dimitar Nikoloski ◽  
Nadine Tournois

AbstractThe research presented here investigates the impact of the business environment on the formalization of informal firms, using firm-level data for 243 informal firms in Kosovo. The findings indicate that business-environment variables such as limited access to financing, the cost of financing, the unavailability of subsidies, tax rates, and corruption have a significant negative impact on the formalization of informal firms. In addition, firm-level characteristics analysis suggests that the age of the firm also exercises a significant negative impact, whereas sales volume exerts a significant positive impact on the formalization of informal firms. These findings have important policy implications and suggest that the abolition of barriers preventing access to financing, as well as tax reforms and a consistent struggle against corruption may have a positive influence on the formalization of informal firms. On the other hand, firm owners should consider formalization to be a means to help them have greater opportunities for survival and growth.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Kanburi Bidzakin ◽  
Simon C. Fialor ◽  
Dadson Awunyo-Vitor ◽  
Iddrisu Yahaya

Irrigation production is a means by which agricultural production can be increased to meet the growing food demands in the world. This study evaluated the effect of irrigation ecology on farm household technical, allocative, and economic efficiency of smallholder rice farmers. Cross-sectional data was obtained from 350 rice farmers across rain fed and irrigation ecologies. Stochastic frontier analyses are used to estimate the production efficiency and endogenous treatment effect regression model is used to estimate the impact of irrigation ecology on rice production efficiency. The impact of irrigation ecology on technical efficiency is about 0.05, which implies farmers producing under irrigation ecology are more technically efficient in their rice production than those in rain fed production. The impact of irrigation ecology on allocative efficiency is about 0.33, which shows that farmers participating in irrigation farming are more allocatively efficient in their rice production than those in rain fed production. The impact on economic efficiency is about 0.23, meaning that farmers participating in irrigation farming are more economically efficient in their rice production than those in rain fed production. Irrigation ecology has positive impact on production efficiency; hence farmers should be encouraged to produce more under irrigation for increased yield and profit.


2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
pp. 1-26
Author(s):  
Kamil Makieła ◽  
Liwiusz Wojciechowski ◽  
Krzysztof Wach

The objective of this paper is to investigate the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) on economic growth and productivity in sectors of the Visegrad Group one decade after their accession to the EU. In order to account for sample heterogeneity, as well as productivity differences, we construct a generalized true random-effects model with varying efficiency distribution. We find that FDI has a positive impact on the Visegrad Group’s sectors and that its effectiveness depends upon the technological gap between the host and home economy. There are three sources of this positive impact: (i) sectoral output and labour productivity growth, (ii) more effective use of input factors, and via (iii) higher efficiency component of the total factor productivity (TFP). These sources form a three-way transmission mechanism through which FDI can impact economic growth conditioned upon FDI effectiveness due to the technological gap.


2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 327-364
Author(s):  
Mahfoudh Hussein Mgammal

Purpose This paper aims to examine the impact of corporate tax planning (TP) on tax disclosure (TD). Using tax expenses data set, with the detailed effective tax rate (ETR) by reconciling individual items of income and expenses. Design/methodology/approach A firm-level panel data set is used to analyse 286 non-financial listed companies on Bursa Malaysia that spans the period 2010-2012. Multivariate statistical analyses were run on the sample data. The empirical understanding of TD depends on public sources of data in the financial statement, characterized in the aggregated note of tax expenses. Fitting with Malaysian environment, the authors measured TD using modified ETR reconciling items. Findings Results show that TP, exhibit a robust positive influence on TD. This suggests that TP is related to lower corporate TD. In addition, companies with high TP attempt to mitigate the disclosure problem by increasing various TD. The authors further find significant positive impact between each of firm size and industry dummy, on TD. This means that company-specific characteristics are significant factors affecting corporate TD. Research limitations/implications This study contributes to the literature on the effect of TP on TD. It depends on both the signalling theory and the Scholes–Wolfson framework, which are the main theories concerned with TP and TD. Therefore, from a theoretical side, the authors add to the current theories by verifying that users are the party influenced whether positively or negatively, by the extent of TD or the extent of TP activities through Malaysian organizations. Practical implications The evidence found in this paper has important policy and practical implications for the authorities, researchers, decision makers and company managers. The findings can provide them some relevant insights on the importance of TP actions from companies’ perspective and contribute to the discussion of who verifies and deduces from TD directed by companies. Originality/value This paper originality is regarded as the first attempt to examine the impact of TP on TD in a developing country such as Malaysia. Malaysian setting is an interesting one to examine because Malaysia could be similar to other countries in Southeast Asia. Results contribute significant insights to the discussion about TD regarding, which parties are responsible for the verification of TD by firms, and which parties benefit from this disclosure. Findings suggest that companies face a trade-off between tax benefits and TD when selecting the type of their TP.


2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 63-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tham Siew Yean ◽  
Andrew Kam Jia Yi

There is a relatively large body of literature examining ASEAN–China relations, including assessments of the impact of the ASEAN–China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA) on ASEAN's welfare and its trade with China. Overall, the results of these studies indicate a positive impact of ACFTA on the region's exports to China. These results differ from firm-level surveys that indicate a low utilization rate of most regional trade agreement tariff concessions, including those provided by ACFTA. Moreover, trade in manufactured goods in the region has been characterized as market-led, and governed by multinationals (MNCs) and their regional production networks. Thus, MNC decisions are the driving force influencing changes in manufactured parts and components trade in the region. This trade is also fostered by duty-free imports in the export enclaves provided by the host economies for these MNCs. In view of the conflicting empirical evidence on the trade effects of regional trade agreements, the objective of this study is to re-assess the impact of ACFTA on ASEAN's manufactured exports to China. In performing this analysis, we separately evaluate the effects of trade in parts and components (P&C) and non–parts and components (non P&C) or final manufactured goods. When we apply gravity estimation methods to individual regressions for these two forms of trade, we find that the determinants of trade are indeed different for the two sectors, and that the implementation of ACFTA had different effects on P&C versus final goods ASEAN exports to China.


2002 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 165-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neal H. Hooker ◽  
Rodolfo M. Nayga ◽  
John W. Siebert

AbstractDetailed information on firm level food safety costs is reported. Survey data for small and very small meat processors are modeled. Economies of scale in implementing Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) systems are investigated. Results indicate that even after controlling for scale, very small plants incur higher compliance costs. Diseconomies of scope are assessed using the probability and number of products discontinued due to HACCP. Such “partial exit” is positively related to the current range of items produced and the need for facility modification. However, no evidence is found for higher levels of partial exit in very small plants.


Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 988
Author(s):  
Jinna Yu ◽  
Yiming Wei ◽  
Wei Fang ◽  
Zhen Liu ◽  
Yujie Zhang ◽  
...  

The purpose of this paper was to analyze the influence mechanism of the new round of Collective Forest Rights Reform (CFRR) on farmers’ production efficiency from the perspective of forestland transfer. Based on the panel data of field investigation in Jiangxi Province, a panel logit model was used to verify whether the new round of CFRR has affected farmers’ forestland circulation behavior. The results showed that the new round of CFRR has played a significant role in promoting forestland circulation. Secondly, the non-parametric DEA method was used to estimate the technical, scale, and comprehensive efficiency of households. DID and panel quantile models were constructed to analyze the impact of forestland inflow policy and forestland outflow policy effects on rural household productivity. The regression results showed that the effect of forestland inflow has had a significantly positive impact on scale and comprehensive efficiency, but it only had a significant effect on technical efficiency in the 0.1 quartile. The effect of forestland outflow was not found to be significant for technical, scale, and comprehensive efficiency, but it was found to be negative for technical efficiency in the 0.75 quartile and negative for scale efficiency in the 0.5 and 0.75 quantiles.


2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 699-707
Author(s):  
Handson Banda ◽  
Ireen Choga

One of the most pressing problems facing the South African economy is unemployment, which has been erratic over the past few years. This study examined the impact of economic growth on unemployment, using quarterly time series data for South Africa for the period 1994 to 2012.Johansen Co-integration reflected that there is stable and one significant long run relationship between unemployment and the explanatory variables that is economic growth (GDP), budget deficit (BUG), real effective exchange rate (REER) and labour productivity (LP). The study utilized Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) to determine the effects of macroeconomic variables thus REER, LP, GDP and BUG on unemployment in South Africa. The results of VECM indicated that LP has a negative long run impact on unemployment whilst GDP, BUG and REER have positive impact. The study resulted in the following policy recommendation: South African government should re-direct its spending towards activities that directly and indirectly promote creation of employment and decent jobs; a conducive environment and flexible labour market policies or legislations without impediments to employment creation should be created; and lastly government should prioritise industries that promote labour intensive. All this will help in absorbing large pools of the unemployed population thereby reducing unemployment in South Africa.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document