Foreign direct investment spillovers in Portugal: additional lessons from a country study

This paper investigates the impact of FDI on the productivity of Portuguese manufacturing sectors. Model specification is improved by considering the choice of the most appropriate interval of the technological gap for spillovers diffusion. We also allow for sectoral variation in the coefficients of the spillover effect; idiosyncratic sectoral factors are identified by means of a fixed effects model. Inter-sectoral positive spillover effects are examined. Significant spillovers require a proper technological differential between foreign and domestic producers and favourable sectoral characteristics. They may occur in modern industries in which the foreign firms have a clear, but not too sharp, edge on the domestic ones. Agglomeration effects are also one pertinent specific influence.

Foreign direct investment spillovers: what can we learn from portuguese data?

This paper investigates the impact of foreign direct investment on the productivity performance of domestic firms in Portugal. The data comprise nine manufacturing sectors for the period 1992-95. Relatively to previous studies, model specification is improved by taking into consideration several aspects: the influence of the “technological gap” on spill-overs diffusion and the choice of its most appropriate interval; sectoral variation in the coefficients of the spill-overs effect; identification of constant, idiosyncratic sectoral factors by means of a fixed effects model; and the search for inter-sectoral positive spillover effects. The relationship between domestic firms productivity and the foreign presence does take place in a positive way, only if a proper technology differential between the foreign and domestic producers exists and the sectoral characteristics are favourable. In broad terms, spillovers diffusion is associated to modern industries in which the foreign owned establishments have a clear, but not too sharp, edge on the domestic ones. Besides, other specific sectoral influences can be pertinent; agglomerative location factors being one example.

Microcrédito, emprego e renda: uma pesquisa empírica na ICC-BLUSOL/SC

Esta pesquisa objetivou analisar o impacto do microcrédito junto aos microempreendedores beneficiados pela Instituição de Microcrédito ICC-Blusol de Blumenau, Santa Catarina. De um total de 5.451 clientes foram selecionados e analisados 94, os quais obtiveram microcrédito durante os 10 últimos anos. Para testar a veracidade da afirmação, utilizou-se modelo econométrico utilizando a técnica de dados em painel, através da estimação das variáveis no modelo de efeitos fixos e efeitos aleatórios. Como variável independente utilizou-se a premissa "Valor do Empréstimo" e como variáveis dependentes "Vendas", "Resultado Operacional", "Garantia Real", "Garantia Aval", "Recursos Humanos", "Custos Fixos" e "Custos Variáveis". Conclui -se que somente as variáveis "Vendas" e "Resultado Operacional" validam a afirmação de que o acesso ao microcrédito resulta em incremento de Faturamento e Renda. A criação e manutenção de empregos, embora não tenha sido comprovada na análise estatística, ficou evidente, pois a simples sobrevivência da empresa já pressupõe isto.

Os impactos do saneamento básico nos estados brasileiros sobre os indicadores dominantes de saúde

Este artigo pretende associar o desempenho dos índices de saúde com saneamento básico nos estados brasileiros e se a filiação partidária afeta ou não esses indicadores. Para elaboração deste trabalho foi montado um banco de dados utilizando a estrutura em dados em painel, referente ao período de 2000 a 2010, com os dados extraídos do SINIS, DataSUS, IBGE e TSE. Foi estimado por modelo de efeitos fixos, corrigindo o poblema de heterocedasticidade da amostra com o Teste de White. Os resultados mostram que não podemos descartar a importância do saneamento. Encontramos evidências do impacto das variáveis de esgotamento sanitário sobre a queda da mortalidade por diarréia aguda (crianças menores de 5 anos).

A model of mixed signals with applications to countersignaling an the GED

We develop a job-market signaling model where signals may convey two pieces of information. This model is employed to study the GED exam and countersignaling (signals non-monotonic in ability). A result of the model is that countersignaling is more expected to occur in jobs that require a combination of skills that differs from the combination used in the schooling process. The model also produces testable implications consistent with evidence on the GED: (i) it signals both high cognitive and low non-cognitive skills and (ii) it does not affect wages. Additionally, it suggests modifications that would make the GED a more signal.

The life-cycle effects of social security in a model with housing and endogenous benefits

This article develops a life-cycle general equilibrium model with heterogeneous agents who make choices of nondurables consumption, investment in homeowned housing and labour supply. Agents retire from an specific age and receive Social Security benefits which are dependant on average past earnings. The model is calibrated, numerically solved and is able to match stylized U.S. aggregate statistics and to generate average life-cycle profiles of its decision variables consistent with data and literature. We also conduct an exercise of complete elimination of the Social Security system and compare its results with the benchmark economy. The results enable us to emphasize the importance of endogenous labour supply and benefits for agents' consumption-smoothing behaviour.

Does mixed frequency vector error correction model add relevant information to exchange misalignment calculus? Evidence for United States

Real exchange rate is an important macroeconomic price in the economy and a ects economic activity, interest rates, domestic prices, trade and investiments ows among other variables. Methodologies have been developed in empirical exchange rate misalignment studies to evaluate whether a real e ective exchange is overvalued or undervalued. There is a vast body of literature on the determinants of long-term real exchange rates and on empirical strategies to implement the equilibrium norms obtained from theoretical models. This study seeks to contribute to this literature by showing that it is possible to calculate the misalignment from a mixed ointegrated vector error correction framework. An empirical exercise using United States' real exchange rate data is performed. The results suggest that the model with mixed frequency data is preferred to the models with same frequency variables