This paper analyses the sources of persistence in conducting R&D activities by SMEs. The data used is a panel of Spanish manufacturing firms drawn from the Survey of Business Strategies (ESEE), for the period 1990-2011. We estimate discrete time proportional hazard models accounting for firm...

The literature on firm level productivity in developed countries recognizes the important role played by firm innovation activities on the evolution of firm productivity. However, the literature on this topic for developing and emerging economies is scarcer and far from conclusive. The aim of...

This paper estimates a dynamic model of a firm’s decision to export and invest in R&D, in which we allow past export and R&D experience to endogenously affect productivity. In our empirical strategy we proceed in two steps: in the first step, using as starting point the traditional control...

Self-selection and learning-by-exporting are the main explanations for the higher productivity of exporting firms. But, whereas evidence on self-selection is largely undisputed, results on learning-by-exporting are mixed and far from conclusive. However, recent research (De Loecker, 2010) has...

This paper analyses whether the productivity gains associated with learning-by-exporting (controlling for self-selection) depend on the intensity of the firm exporting activity. Results from a representative ample of Spanish manufacturing firms indicate that the yearly average gains in...

This paper analyses whether undertaking R&D activities allows SMEs to attenuate the negative impact of recessions on productivity. In contrast to other studies we use a firm level indicator of the cycle based on firms’ own perceptions, while total factor productivity is obtained using a...