This paper studies the process of plant exit and productivity growth in Japan during the ‘lost decade’. A productivity decomposition shows the low rate of productivity growth at the aggregate level to be due to slow within plant productivity growth and a small contribution from the entry and...

In the literature there is substantial evidence that a plant is more likely to be closed down if it is owned by a firm with other plants or is owned by a multinational enterprise (MNE). But does ownership or multi-plant status matter for which plants are closed? Using Japanese data we study...

I study how entry barriers affect productivity by exploiting the collapse of the US sugar cartel as a natural experiment. Using difference-in-difference estimations, I find the eradication of entry barriers caused a 35% increase in productivity within the treatment group.