Using data from 11 EU countries, the paper investigates the impact of scale economies on labour productivity in European business services. Moreover, it analyses whether the incidence of scale sub-optimality is related to characteristics of the market or to national regulation characteristics....

Resource misallocation can lower aggregate total factor productivity (TFP).We use microdata on manufacturing establishments to quantify the potential extent of misallocation in China and India versus the United States. We measure sizable gaps in marginal products of labor and capital across...

This paper analyses differences across sectors in firms’ propensity to innovate and the relative importance of inputs to innovation classifying firms into four broad sectors. The propensity and drivers of four types of innovation (new to firm, new to market, process and organisational) within...

The M&A transactions represent a wide range of unique business optimization opportunities in the corporate transformation deals, which are usually characterized by the high level of total risk. The M&A transactions can be successfully implemented by taking to an account the size of investments,...

This paper presents an empirical examination of firm characteristic determinants of the capital structure of a sample of 299 Irish small and medium sized firms (SMEs). Hypotheses formulated from pecking order and agency theories incorporating a financial growth life cycle approach are tested on...

The Brazilian electric sector has two market-environments for the energy supply: a regulated pool (ACR), with 64 power distribution companies, and the free market (ACL), including free-consumers and energy wholesalers. In the regulated market, the power generation competition is enforced via...

Competition ensures competitive prices. In this respect, the liberalisation of the EU energy markets is a must. The regulatory framework for the energy markets should be properly designed and implemented by the member states in order to ensure enough competition. This paper aims to analyse the...

The project to create an experimental “clean coal” plant in Mississippi is funded by electric utility customers in the poorest state in the United States. The incentives for the project come from the industry capturing the Public Service Commission of Mississippi. The controversial...