The role of firm location and agglomeration economies on export propensity: the case of Portuguese SMEs

PurposeThe present study seeks to assess whether the firm's location and agglomeration economies affect the firm's export propensity.Design/methodology/approachThis work is based on a sample of 20,234 Portuguese manufacturing small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and resort to the estimation of a probit model.FindingsEmpirical results show that the location and agglomeration economies have an important role in determining the firm's export propensity. In particular, the study concludes that SMEs located in coastal areas or close to the border are more likely to export. Furthermore, the study also concludes that specialization economies are an important driver of small and medium-sized firms' export propensity while export spillovers are particularly relevant for micro firms. However, urbanization, measured through firms density in NUTS3 region, negatively affects firms' export propensity, which may be due to high congestion costs in the regions with a high firms density.Originality/valueThis study focus on the determinants of the decision to export or the export propensity, particularly the external factors such as the firm's location and agglomeration economies. This is a relatively neglected topic in the literature that has focused on the determinants of export intensity.

Analisis Tarif Dan Besarnya Pajak Bahan Bakar Kendaraan Bermotor Di Indonesia

Fossil-fueled motor vehicles play an important role in supporting the economicactivities of society. Besides having a positive effect on a country's economicgrowth, the operation of fossil-fueled motor vehicles also has a negative impact.These negative effects impose costs on society which are usually known asexternal costs and consist of air pollution costs, congestion costs, accident costs, noise costs and climate change costs. Conceptually, the external costs ofoperating these fossil fuel vehicles must be charged to motor vehicle usersthrough the imposition of various taxes, one of which can be in the form of MotorVehicle Fuel Tax. In Indonesia the Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax is levied as a RegionalTax at a rate of 5% of the Selling Value of Motor Vehicle Fuel and is notdifferentiated for petrol or diesel fuels. Research conducted shows that the MotorVehicle Fuel Tax that is collected in Indonesia is still too small, both from itsabsolute value and its tariffs, when compared with European countries, OECDand non OECD member countries and countries in the Southeast Asia Region. Inaddition, the value of the Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax collected is still insufficient to cover the external costs of operating a fossil-fueled motorized vehicle. Therefore,the tax rates for motor vehicle fuels in Indonesia must be increased and the ratesmust be separated between gasoline fuel which must be higher than diesel fuel.

PENENTUAN BIAYA KEMACETAN LALU LINTAS PADA SIMPANG BERSINYAL SGM YOGYAKARTA

The SGM signalized intersection in the city of Yogyakarta is a junction with high traffic volume and has the potential to cause traffic congestion. This study aims to analyze the performance of this intersections and es-timate costs due to congestion that occurs. This study was performed by conducting a field survey to determine the geometric conditions, traffic volume, cycle time, and vehicle speed. The data obtained are then analyzed and modeled using Vissim 10 software. The intersection performance indicator considered is the queue length and level of service. The calculation of congestion costs using indicators of vehicle numbers, vehicle operating costs, spot speed, desired speed, travel time value, and queue time. The results of the observation showed that the performance of the SGM signalized intersection in Yogyakarta was very poor, with the level of service F at peak hours, so that repairs need to be done. In this study, the recommended solution consists of 2 alternatives, namely alternative 1, by changing the phase, and alternative 2, by widening the road. The results of the analysis show that alternative 2 provides the best solution to improve performance and reduce congestion costs at the intersection. Keywords: signal intersection, congestion costs, service level, intersection performance, queue Abstrak Simpang bersinyal SGM di Kota Yogyakarta merupakan suatu simpang dengan volume lalu lintas tinggi dan berpotensi menimbulkan kemacetan lalu lintas. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis kinerja simpang tersebut dan mengestimasi biaya akibat kemacetan yang terjadi. Studi ini dilakukan dengan melakukan survei lapangan untuk mengetahui kondisi geometrik, volume lalu lintas, waktu siklus, dan kecepatan kendaraan. Data yang diperoleh selanjutnya dianalisis dan dimodelkan menggunakan perangkat lunak Vissim 10. Indikator kinerja simpang yang dipertimbangkan adalah antrian dan tingkat pelayanan. Perhitungan biaya kemacetan menggunakan indikator jumlah kendaraan, biaya operasional kendaraan, kecepatan sesaat, kecepatan ideal, nilai waktu perjalanan, dan waktu antrian. Hasil pengamatan menunjukkan bahwa kinerja simpang bersinyal SGM Yogyakarta sangat buruk, dengan tingkat pelayanan F pada jam puncak, sehingga perlu dilakukan perbaikan. Pada kajian ini, solusi yang direkomendasikan terdiri atas 2 alternatif, yaitu alternatif 1, dengan mengubah fase, dan alternatif 2, dengan melakukan pelebaran jalan. Hasil analisis menunjukkan bahwa alter-natif 2 memberikan solusi terbaik untuk meningkatkan kinerja dan mengurangi biaya kemacetan pada simpang. Kata-kata kunci: simpang bersinyal, biaya kemacetan, tingkat pelayanan, kinerja simpang, antrian

Analisis Tarif Dan Besarnya Pajak Bahan Bakar Kendaraan Bermotor Di Indonesia

Fossil-fueled motor vehicles play an important role in supporting the economicactivities of society. Besides having a positive effect on a country's economicgrowth, the operation of fossil-fueled motor vehicles also has a negative impact.These negative effects impose costs on society which are usually known asexternal costs and consist of air pollution costs, congestion costs, accident costs, noise costs and climate change costs. Conceptually, the external costs ofoperating these fossil fuel vehicles must be charged to motor vehicle usersthrough the imposition of various taxes, one of which can be in the form of MotorVehicle Fuel Tax. In Indonesia the Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax is levied as a RegionalTax at a rate of 5% of the Selling Value of Motor Vehicle Fuel and is notdifferentiated for petrol or diesel fuels. Research conducted shows that the MotorVehicle Fuel Tax that is collected in Indonesia is still too small, both from itsabsolute value and its tariffs, when compared with European countries, OECDand non OECD member countries and countries in the Southeast Asia Region. Inaddition, the value of the Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax collected is still insufficient to cover the external costs of operating a fossil-fueled motorized vehicle. Therefore,the tax rates for motor vehicle fuels in Indonesia must be increased and the ratesmust be separated between gasoline fuel which must be higher than diesel fuel.

Pemilihan Moda Terhadap Rencana Penerapan Kebijakan Pembatasan Kendaraan Pribadi Roda Empat

Various solutions have been implemented by the DK! Government of to solve the problems of urban transport. However, these efforts have not been reduce private vehicle users as a cause of congestion. It is necessary to study on the selection mode of policy implementation plans prirnte Pelzicle restrictions. Mode choice method used in this study is Multinominal logic. The analysis will examine if the four transfer modes applicable policy. Those policies are congestion costs, increased taxes, increased parking fees, and fuel prices increase. From the results obtained that the implementation of four policies relating to the additional costs traveling to private vehicle users will have an impact on the shift to other modes of the motor (35.63%), railways (20:44%), and the busway (20.50%). Congestion charging at 20% will have an impact on the movement of the motor car users (27.57%), train (10.21 %), and the busway (12.35%); increase in vehicle tax rate of 20% will have an impact on the movement of the user to motor cars (26.10%), train (16.84%), and the busway (15.73%), an increase of 40% is the motor (29.52%), train (18.23%), busway (17.9%); increase in parking fees by 20% will have an impact on the movement of the motor car users (25.74%), rail (4.03%), and the busway (4.70%); increase in fuel prices 30% will have an impact on the movement of the motor car users (31.26%), rail (6.75%), and the busway (5.13%).

Demand Uncertainty, Cost Behavior, and the Asian Financial Crisis: Evidence from Korea

The mix of fixed and variable costs in response to environmental changes is important for the sustainability of a firm. This study examines how demand uncertainty affects managers’ cost structure decisions. Using data on Korean firms from 1982 to 2015, my study provides evidence that cost rigidity increases in demand uncertainty. This finding implies that managers under higher uncertainty will increase the committed capacity to reduce congestion costs, resulting in a more rigid (less elastic) cost structure with higher fixed and lower variable costs in the short term. I also investigate the effect of the 1997 Asian financial crisis on cost rigidity. I predict that the massive structural changes entailed by the crisis, such as the deteriorated access to external funds, increase in the tendency of loss aversion, and expansion of outsourcing and temporary job positions, will reduce the magnitude of cost rigidity following greater demand uncertainty. Consistent with the prediction, the positive relation between demand uncertainty and cost rigidity becomes weaker in the period following the crisis, compared to the pre-crisis period.

Analysis and interpret road traffic congestion costs in Lebanon

The cost of environmental degradation in Lebanon was estimated to be close to $485 million per year, or 2.9 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The large negative impacts of this degradation are the pollution occurring in urban area and is mainly caused by air pollution and with an average estimate of $145 million per year and around 0.87 percent of the GDP. This high air pollution is mostly linked to the transportation sector in Lebanon. Lebanon suffers from a daily increase in road network usage, which has resulted in gridlocks, especially in the greater Beirut area. By all means, the continued lack of policies and a political will to encourage the adoption of an efficient and reliable public transportation and to discourage the ownership of private vehicles have resulted in traffic growth that is faster than the road capacity. By all means, congestion is not a passing problem; it will continue to grow in the absence of measures to reduce traffic by adopting other modes of transportation, such as buses, trains, Trams, bicycles and others etc. This study describes the various factors that affect the costs associated with congestion, and provides well-defined methods for evaluating the corresponding costs.

Do universities generate spatial spillovers? Evidence from US counties between 1930 and 2010

This paper explores the impact of new universities established in the USA between 1931 and 1980 on population density, GDP and market size measured from 1930 to 2010. The analysis is based on differences in differences on counties selected through propensity score matching, as well as an instrumental variable approach. The evidence suggests that counties hosting a university for the first time grew by between 1% and 3% annually on top of the general trends of population density and GDP growth, and that this effect expanded to neighboring counties. Controlling for research intensity and interstate road infrastructure shows that the potential gains from these new universities were severely constrained by the ease of access, which eventually resulted in higher congestion costs. These results point to a situation where new universities create spillover effects that eventually fade away if not accompanied by additional investments.