In this study, we address a major problem in the measurement of firm performance and the regulation of natural monopolies, namely the intertemporal character of long-term investment decisions. In specific, we focus on the impact of adjustment costs of investments on estimates of firms’...

We propose a two-stage procedure for finding realistic benchmarks for nonparametric efficiency analysis. On the first stage the efficient DMUs are figured out by a free disposal hull approach. These benchmarks are directly targeted by directional distance functions and the extent of inefficiency...

Scale characteristics are key properties of production functions that determine optimal firm sizes, and have considerable policy implications for sectors undergoing restructuring. However, estimates of scale characteristics typically vary with the assumptions of the underlying empirical model....

Regulatory authorities in the European electricity sector use benchmarking techniques to determine the cost-efficient production level for an incentive regulation of distribution system operators (DSOs). With nearly 900 DSOs operating in the German electricity sector, of which 200 subject to...

The recent period of crisis in credit markets has highlighted the crucial role of bank risk taking. Our paper assesses the inter-temporal relationships among bank efficiency, capital and bank risk-taking in the EU-26 commercial banking industry between 1995 and 2007. Our results support the bad...

Radial and non-radial DEA models are distinguished on the basis of the presence of slacks. Viewing slacks as a possible source of inefficiency, this paper makes an empirical attempt to assess the relative strengths of these two sets of models in examining the total factor productivity change and...

This paper empirically examines the different variants of data envelopment analysis (DEA) models to select the large cap market securities in India in both constant and variable returns to scale environments. The results of this exercise are summarized as follows. First, there is a fall in...

The objective of this paper is to discuss the use of modern frontier efficiency analysis to analyze firm performance in the insurance industry. The objective is to provide the foundations for insurance economists to use in adapting their research to incorporate the frontier efficiency approach....

This study employs data on small businesses from the Office of Advocacy for the U.S. Small Business Administration along with the FDIC Call Report data for U.S. commercial banks. We examine the efficiency of the impact of the financial inputs on small business entrepreneurial output. Our study...

The recent period of crisis in credit markets has highlighted the crucial role of bank risk taking. Our paper assesses the inter-temporal relationships among bank efficiency, capital and bank risk-taking in the EU-26 commercial banking industry between 1995 and 2007. Our results support the bad...