The study presents (1) the convergence of labour productivity in manufacturing industries in Japanese MEAs during 1985 to 2000, using Markov chain transition matrix and (2) the speed of convergence to an ergodic distribution. The results indicate that (1) the labour productivities of all MEAs...

From the theoretical point of view, households consumption inequality represents the inequality of the expected utilities through their lifecycles if each family optimizes its lifetime utility. We investigate its empirical validity, applying a regression analysis. The result of the regression...

By estimating long-run relationships in bilateral import functions, the effects of the Canada-US Free Trade Agreement is analysed. We also incorporate the gradual switching model into the import function to capture the phased tariff reductions. The result shows that the free trade agreement made...

The Amami islands are located 380 km southwest of Japan proper. These islands have two economic features: they are islands that many tourists visit because of their natural resources and they are an undeveloped area where the central government of Japan provides large fiscal subsidies. We...

Using monthly data on Japanese industries, we estimate a model of dynamic labour demand that incorporates adjustment costs for hiring and firing workers, and for changing working hours.