This paper assesses the importance for structural transformation of three features of sectoral technology: labor-augmenting technological progress, capital intensity, and substitutability between capital and labor. We estimate CES production functions for agriculture, manufacturing, and services...

We evaluate the determinants of matching efficiency changes through a stochastic Cobb- Douglas production frontier model extended to allow the efficiency coefficient to depend on variables meant to capture workers and firms characteristics. We apply this methodology to examine regional...

In this paper we study whether stock option schemes affect firm technical inefficiency. We estimate Cobb-Douglas stochastic production frontier models using a novel panel data set on the publicly listed Finnish firms in the manufacturing and ICT sectors over the period from 1992 to 2002. We find...

The efficient use of inputs is indispensable in many developing countries, such as Ethiopia. This study assesses the level and determinants of technical efficiency of smallholder farmers using the true fixed effects (TFE) model. The TFE model separates inefficiency from unobserved heterogeneity....

In this paper, we consider how Russian Agriculture has developed since the constitution of the Russian Federation. The analysis is based on Oblast level data of 75 territorial units during the period from 1993 to 1998 and is focusing on technical efficiency (TE), technological change, and (both...

The ratio of pension assets to GDP in Denmark is the highest among OECD countries. Danish pension funds invest more than half of the country's pension wealth in foreign assets, giving rise to exchange rate risks that are managed using financial instruments. We study the currency hedging...

While macroprudential policy has mostly focused on the role of banks, we argue that pension funds are also important for financial stability. Drawing on previous research on pension funds, we explain how their actions can have a vital impact on other financial institutions as well as on...

We analyze the efficiency and productivity growth of a representative sample of Portuguese hospitals from 1997 to 2004, using an innovative approach by employing the directional distance function and the Luenberger productivity indicator. The primary advantage of our approach is that both input...

In this paper we investigate the determinants of local governments' technical efficiency in road maintenance for a panel of German counties using a broad variety of estimation approaches. More specifically, we calculate efficiency indices using non-parametric (DEA) and parametric (stochastic...

Economic reform in China helped transform the structure and volume of agricultural production and resulted in significant changes in efficiency and productivity. This paper measures agricultural technical efficiency (TE) and total factor productivity (TFP) in China by allowing producers...