distinguish between productivity gains arising from lower tariffs on final goods relative to those on intermediate inputs. Lower … output tariffs can produce productivity gains by inducing tougher import competition whereas cheaper imported inputs can … tariffs. A 10 percentage point fall in output tariffs increases productivity by about 1%, whereas an equivalent fall in input …

Stochastic frontier production functions are estimated for Bulgarian (1993–5) and Romanian (1994–5) manufacturing … industries using firm-level panel data. The technical efficiency of firms is found to vary significantly both within and across … industrial sectors in each country. We find strong evidence of a positive relationship between firm technical efficiency levels …