This paper investigates the factors that explain the level and dynamics of manufacturing firm productive efficiency. In our empirical analysis, we use a unique sample of about 39,000 firms in 256 industries from the German Cost Structure Census over the years 1992-2005. We estimate the...

Economic disparities between the regions of the European Union are of constant concern both for policy and economic research. In this paper we examine whether there are overlapping trends of regional development in the EU: overall convergence on the one hand and persistent or even increasing...

We examine why firms change their main bank and how this affects loans, interest payments and firm performance after switching. Using unique firm-bank matched Ukrainian data, the treatment effect estimates suggest that more transparent and riskier companies are more likely to switch their main...

This paper has two goals. First, it analyzes the extent to which the innovativeness of spin-offs, either born from a research facility or from another company, is influenced by locational conditions. Second, it provides evidence on how important local cooperation links are in comparison to...

Using panel data on European regions and applying Analysis of Covariance, our study provides an empirical assessment of the relative importance of national, regional and spatial factors for explaining variations of productivity. Our analysis shows that initial economic conditions or...

Die Europa-Universität Viadrina, Frankfurt (Oder), hat zusammen mit dem DIW Berlin und dem Institut für Wirtschaftswissenschaften der Polnischen Akademie der Wissenschaft, Warschau, untersucht, wie die Unternehmen in Polen und in Ostdeutschland die Bedingungen an ihrem Standort bewerten und ob...

Forschung und Entwicklung (FuE) und Innovation wurden in der ostdeutschen Wirtschaft vorwiegend bei kleinen und mittleren Unternehmen (KMU) sowohl mit bundesweiten als auch mit regionalspezifischen Programmen bis zuletzt kräftig gefördert. Im Auftrag des Bundesministeriums für Wirtschaft und...

Unternehmensgründungen sowie kleinen und mittleren Unternehmen kommen im Innovationsprozess bei der Entwicklung, Nutzung und Verbreitung von Forschungsergebnissen eine bedeutende Rolle zu. Dies machte der internationale Workshop zum Zusammenhang zwischen Unternehmensgründungen, Innovationen...

A joint research project at the European University Viadrina, DIW Berlin and the Polish Academy of Science has investigated how companies assess their locational conditions and whether there is a relationship between location attributes and the company performance. In both countries the majority...

The broadest possible diversification of investments is considered an important strategy for minimizing investment risk. Most households in Germany do distribute their financial assets over several types of investment. However, investment behavior is only partially consistent with the overall...