Using the stochastic metafrontier framework of Battese et al. (J Prod Anal 21:91–103, <CitationRef CitationID="CR5">2004</CitationRef>), this study proposes to compare and measure the cost efficiency and cost frontier gap between the banking industry in Taiwan and China. It further identifies environmental variables that determine...</citationref>

This paper uses a panel data set of microfinance institutions (MFI) across the world to compare several identification strategies of cost efficiency and economies of scale. Concretely, we contrast the non-parametric Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) with the Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) and...

This paper studies efficiency and scale economies in the Japanese non-life insurance industry using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) with inclusion of input prices in the model. Japanese non-life insurers generally score quite high in technical efficiency but low in allocative efficiency, which...

Contemporary studies of cost efficiency in the insurance industry have predominantly focused on large economies. This paper investigates scale economies and cost efficiency in the Irish life insurance industry by using the translog cost function and distribution-free method. Increasing returns...

Contemporary studies of cost efficiency in the insurance industry have predominantly focused on large economies. This paper investigates scale economies and cost efficiency in the Irish life insurance industry by using the translog cost function and distribution-free method. Increasing returns...

This paper examines the cost efficiency in the nursing home industry, an issue of concern to Swiss policy makers because of the explosive growth of national expenditure on elderly care and the aging of the population. A stochastic cost frontier model has been applied to a panel of 1780...

This paper examines the cost efficiency in the nursing home industry, an issue of concern to Swiss policy makers because of the explosive growth of national expenditure on elderly care and the aging of the population. A stochastic cost frontier model with a translog function has been applied to...

This study suggests that during the period 1995-2005, the average cost of Cypriot commercial banks is close to that of Greek banks, but higher than the average cost of UK commercial banks, albeit the latter difference declines over time. In addition, Cypriot (and UK) commercial banks operate in...