Based on a case study, this paper analyses China's current price and subsidy policy for grain and discusses some questions relating to the reorientation of this policy. First, the pricing system for the grain market, especially that for the state-run grain marketing agencies, is illustrated....

The system of exchange rates, border taxes, and subsidies- the agrimonetary system- is incompatible with the goals of EC-1992. This system has led to a breakdown in the concept of common pricing and to distrotions in trade patterns and has created large administrative costs to the EC....

In the wake of current moves to dismantle apartheid in South Africa, the agricultural sector is seeking ways of restructuring its dualistic nature. Restructuring may affect both equity and productivity. Hungarian and other experiences can provide useful guidelines. Hungary's restructuring has...

The objective of this paper is to disentangle the question of the influence of R&D investment on resource allocation efficiency and income distribution in Japanese agriculture during 1960-87. The average marginal product of R&D stock as estimated by the cost function approach is calculated to be...

The purpose of this paper is to measure the technical efficiency of farms on the basis of data envelopment analysis (DEA) and to present an analytical method of farm diagnosis using measurements obtained for melon farms in Japan. The paper first describes the objectives of melon farms operating...

Although the external effects of agricultural production receive considerable attention, the measurement of these effects is not well developed. In this paper, after introducing a theoretical approach, the methodology is applied to the Netherlands. The method used requires information about the...

This paper examines the consistency of two series of aggregate output data in comparing the agricultural performance of60 developing countries. Employing two approaches that take into account the fact that deepening of intermediate goods takes place in agriculture as development proceeds, it is...

Access to credit is one strategy for promoting the adoption of yield-enhancing technologies. However, advancing credit to smallholder farmers for encouraging technology adoption is a complex policy issue. The objective of this paper is to identify appropriate and sustainable credit repayment...

In this paper we compare the changes in farm incomes in EU regions and US States between 1989 and 2002. The aim of this comparative analysis is highlight the patterns of convergence or divergence and how they d iffer over time. We use two recent analytical instruments: non-stationary panel...

The paper aims at studying the challenges of agricultural finance in Armenia. Strengthening the rural credit markets and institutions in Armenia is of paramount importance. The study reviews and analyzes the outcomes of the Agricultural Credit Club Program implemented by the US Department of...