Money and Inflation: The Role of Persistent Velocity Movements
Makram El-Shagi, Sebastian Giesen
Abstract
While the long run relation between money and inflation is well established, empirical evidence on the adjustment to the long run equilibrium is very heterogeneous. In the present paper we use a multivariate state space framework, that substantially expands the traditional vector error correction approach, to analyze the short run impact of money on prices. We contribute to the literature in three ways: First, we distinguish changes in velocity of money that are due to institutional developments and thus do not induce inflationary pressure, and changes that reflect transitory movements in money demand. This is achieved with a newly developed multivariate unobserved components decomposition. Second, we analyze whether the high volatility of the transmission from monetary pressure to inflation follows some structure, i.e., if the parameter regime can assumed to be constant. Finally, we use our model to illustrate the consequences of the monetary policy of the Fed that has been employed to mitigate the impact of the financial crisis, simulating different exit strategy scenarios.
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Regionale Entwicklungsmuster und ihre Konsequenzen für die Raumordnungspolitik
Alexander Kubis, Mirko Titze, Matthias Brachert, U. Bergner, Harald Lehmann
IWH-Sonderhefte,
No. 3,
2009
Abstract
Seit Mitte der 1990er Jahre haben sich die deutschen Arbeitsmarktregionen sehr heterogen entwickelt. So existieren Regionen, die neben einer Steigerung ihrer Wettbewerbsfähigkeit zusätzlich einen Erwerbstätigenzuwachs verzeichnen konnten. Daneben sind Regionen zu finden, deren wirtschaftliches Wachstum und deren Arbeitsplatzentwicklung ungünstiger verliefen. Diese Beobachtung führt mit Blick auf regionalpolitische Förderziele und Strategien zu weitreichenden Konsequenzen.
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Financial constraints and the margins of FDI
Claudia M. Buch
Bundesbank Discussion Paper 29/2009,
2009
Abstract
Recent literature on multinational firms has stressed the importance of low productivity as a barrier to the cross-border expansion of firms. But firms may also need external finance to shoulder the costs of entering foreign markets. We develop a model of multinational firms facing real and financial barriers to foreign direct investment (FDI), and we analyze their impact on the FDI decision (the extensive margin) and foreign affiliate sales (the intensive margin). We provide empirical evidence based on a detailed dataset of German multinationals which contains information on parent-level and affiliate-level financial constraints as well as about the location the foreign affiliates. We find that financial factors constrain firms’ foreign investment decisions, an effect felt in particular by large firms. Financial constraints at the parent level matter for the extensive, but less
so for the intensive margin. For the intensive margin, financial constraints at the affiliate level are relatively more important.
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Barriers to Internationalization: Firm-Level Evidence from Germany
Claudia M. Buch
IAW Discussion Paper No. 52,
2009
Abstract
Exporters and multinationals are larger and more productive than their domestic
counterparts. In addition to productivity, financial constraints and labor market
constraints might constitute barriers to entry into foreign markets. We present new
empirical evidence on the extensive and intensive margin of exports and FDI based on detailed micro-level data of German firms. Our paper has three main findings. First, in line with earlier literature, we find a positive impact of firm size and productivity on firms’ international activities. Second, small firms suffer more frequently from financial constraints than bigger firms, but financial conditions have no strong effect on internationalization. Third, labor market constraints constitute a more severe barrier to foreign activities than financial constraints. Being covered by collective bargaining particularly impedes international activities.
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Beyond Incubation: An Analysis of Firm Survival and Exit Dynamics in the Post-graduation Period
Michael Schwartz
Journal of Technology Transfer,
2009
Abstract
With regard to the survival rates of business incubator (BI) firms, the literature mainly presents findings of failure rates only during the incubation period. Little is known about the survival or exit dynamics of firms after leaving the incubator facilities. The study approaches this research question by examining the survival of 352 firms from five German BIs after their graduation. The findings suggest that graduation causes an immediate negative effect on survivability that lasts up to three years after leaving the incubators. Furthermore, heterogeneous patterns of post-graduation exit dynamics between the BIs were observed. It was also found that performance during the incubation period is an indicator of the propensity of business closure after graduation. This study offers valuable insights and implications for all stakeholders of BI-initiatives.
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Effects of Heterogeneity on Bank Efficiency Scores
J. W. B. Bos, Michael Koetter, James W. Kolari, Clemens J. M. Kool
European Journal of Operational Research,
No. 1,
2009
Abstract
Bank efficiency estimates often serve as a proxy of managerial skill since they quantify sub-optimal production choices. But such deviations can also be due to omitted systematic differences among banks. In this study, we examine the effects of heterogeneity on bank efficiency scores. We compare different specifications of a stochastic cost and alternative profit frontier model with a baseline specification. After conducting a specification test, we discuss heterogeneity effects on efficiency levels, ranks and the tails of the efficiency distribution. We find that heterogeneity controls influence both banks’ optimal costs and profits and their ability to be efficient. Differences in efficiency scores are important for more than only methodological reasons. First, different ways of accounting for heterogeneity result in estimates of foregone profits and additional costs that are significantly different from what we infer from our general specification. Second, banks are significantly re-ranked when their efficiency is estimated with a specification other than the preferred, general specification. Third, the general specification gives the most reliable estimates of the probability of distress, although differences to the other specifications are low.
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Growth, Volatility, and Credit Market Imperfections: Evidence from German Firms
Claudia M. Buch, Jörg Döpke
Journal of Economic Studies,
2008
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is two-fold. First, it studies whether output volatility and growth are linked at the firm-level, using data for German firms. Second, it explores whether the link between volatility and growth depends on the degree of credit market imperfections.
Design/methodology/approach – The authors use a novel firm-level dataset provided by the Deutsche Bundesbank, the so-called Financial Statements Data Pool. The dataset has time series observations for German firms for the period 1997-2004, and the authors use information on the debt-to-assets or leverage ratio of firms to proxy for credit-constraints at the firm-level. As additional proxies for the importance of credit market imperfections, we use information on the size and on the legal status of firms.
Findings – The authors find that higher volatility has a negative impact on growth for small and a positive impact for larger firms. Higher leverage is associated with higher growth. At the same time, there is heterogeneity in the determinants of growth across firms from different sectors and across firms with a different legal status.
Practical implications – While most traditional macroeconomic models assume that growth and volatility are uncorrelated, a number of microeconomic models suggest that the two may be linked. However, it is unclear whether the link is positive or negative. The paper presents additional evidence regarding this question. Moreover, understanding whether credit market conditions affect the link between volatility and growth is of importance for policy makers since it suggests a channel through which the credit market can have long-run welfare implications. The results stress the importance of firm-level heterogeneity for the effects and effectiveness of economic policy measures.
Originality/value – The paper has two main novel features. First, it uses a novel firm-level dataset to analyze the determinants of firm-level growth. Second, it analyzes the growth-volatility nexus using firm-level data. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first paper, which addresses the link between volatility, growth, and credit market imperfections using firm-level data.
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The Great Risk Shift? Income Volatility in an International Perspective
Claudia M. Buch
CESifo Working Paper No. 2465,
2008
Abstract
Weakening bargaining power of unions and the increasing integration of the world economy may affect the volatility of capital and labor incomes. This paper documents and explains changes in income volatility. Using a theoretical framework which builds distribution risk into a real business cycle model, hypotheses on the determinants of the relative volatility of capital and labor are derived. The model is tested using industry-level data. The data cover 11 industrialized countries, 22 manufacturing and services industries, and a maximum of 35 years. The paper has four main findings. First, the unconditional volatility of labor and capital incomes has declined, reflecting the decline in macroeconomic volatility. Second, the idiosyncratic component of income volatility has hardly changed over time. Third, crosssectional heterogeneity in the evolution of relative income volatilities is substantial. If anything, the labor incomes of high- and low-skilled workers have become more volatile in relative terms. Fourth, income volatility is related to variables measuring the bargaining power of workers. Trade openness has no significant impact.
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Industry Specialization, Diversity and the Efficiency of Regional Innovation Systems
Michael Fritsch, Viktor Slavtchev
Determinants of Innovative Behaviour,
2008
Abstract
Innovation processes are characterized by a pronounced division of labor between actors. Two types of externality may arise from such interactions. On the one hand, a close location of actors affiliated to the same industry may stimulate innovation (MAR externalities). On the other hand, new ideas may be born by the exchange of heterogeneous and complementary knowledge between actors, which belong to different industries (Jacobs’ externalities). We test the impact of both MAR as well as Jacobs’ externalities on innovative performance at the regional level. The results suggest an inverted u-shaped relationship between regional specialization in certain industries and innovative performance. Further key determinants of the regional innovative performance are private sector R&D and university-industry collaboration.
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Suburban Municipalities on Trial – Analysing the Sustainability of Socioeconomic Structures at the Example of the Municipality Schkopau
Sabine Döhler, Alexander Kubis
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 7,
2008
Abstract
Im Rahmen einer Fallstudie werden die sozioökonomischen Merkmale einer Gemeinde im Umland einer Großstadt analysiert. Die Fallstudie betrachtet die Einheitsgemeinde Schkopau, die im südlichen Sachsen-Anhalt gelegen ist. Untersucht wird, ob die im Jahr 2004 erfolgte Bildung der Einheitsgemeinde Schkopau im Sinne tragfähiger sozioökonomischer Strukturen ökonomisch rational war. Zur Beantwortung dieser Fragestellung wurde das Konzept von Boustedt für so genannte Trabantenstädte als speziellem Typ von Umlandgemeinden auf das Fallbeispiel der Einheitsgemeinde Schkopau übertragen.
Anhand der herangezogenen Kriterien ergibt sich ein ambivalentes Bild. Das Merkmal der politischen Selbstständigkeit ist qua Gesetz erfüllt. Im kulturellen und städtebaulichen Bereich zeichnet sich bezüglich der sozioökonomischen Kriterien ein heterogenes Bild ab. Im wirtschaftlichen Bereich verfügt die Gemeinde dank der auf ihrem Territorium verankerten Industrieunternehmen über hohe Steuereinnahmen und mithin eine entsprechende finanzwirtschaftliche Stärke. Diese ist jedoch nur ein Teilaspekt des ökonomischen Potenzials. Das Kriterium der Mindesteinwohnerzahl, das häufig im Zusammenhang mit der Beurteilung tragfähiger gemeindlicher Strukturen herangezogen wird, ist formal erfüllt.
Alles in allem lässt sich aus den Ausprägungen der untersuchten sozioökonomischen Kriterien von O. Boustedt die Tragfähigkeit der Einheitsgemeinde nicht abschließend klären. Dies liegt unter anderem an den starken Verflechtungsbeziehungen in Mitteldeutschland. Die Analyse zeigt aufgrund der hohen Dynamik des Strukturwandels weiteren Forschungsbedarf auf. Nicht zuletzt um Entscheidungen über die „richtigen“ gemeindlichen Strukturen treffen zu können, bedarf es einer laufenden Weiterentwicklung der Kriterien zur Beurteilung tragfähiger sozioökonomischer Strukturen von lokalen und regionalen Gebietskörperschaften.
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