The Malmquist productivity index is based on distance functions, which are reciprocals of radial Debreu-Farrell efficiency measures, and which have a number of desirable properties. Linear programming techniques are frequently employed to calculate the efficiency measures. However these...

Gerard Debreu introduced a well known radial efficiency measure which he called a “coefficient of resource utilization.” He derived this scalar from a much less well known “dead loss” function that characterizes the monetary value sacrificed to inefficiency, and which is to be minimized...

A recent Australian Productivity Commission Staff Working Paper has estimated a 25 % decline in value added total factor productivity in Australian coal mining over the period 2000/2001–2006/2007. The decline coincides with a period of rapidly increasing global demand for, and price of, coal,...