The Japanese and Chinese models of industrial organisation : fighting for supremacy in the Vietnamese motorcycle industry

This paper explores the consequences of the emerging rivalry between Japanese and Chinese manufacturers. It focuses specifically on industrial organisation, one of the key factors that underlie the competitiveness of manufacturing industries. The question to be asked is what happens when distinctive models of industrial organisation, coming from Japan and China, clash in a developing country. An in-depth longitudinal analysis of the Vietnamese motorcycle industry adopting a modified version of the global value chain governance theory shows that a decade-long industrial transformation resulted in organisational diversity. The implications of the analysis for the literature on industrial organisation are discussed.

How do free trade agreements reduce tariff rates and non-tariff barriers?

This paper empirically investigates how far free trade agreements (FTAs) successfully lower tariff rates and non-tariff barriers (NTBs) for manufacturing industries by employing the bilateral tariff and NTB data in a time series for countries around the world. We find that FTAs under GATT Article XXIV and the Enabling Clause contribute to reducing tariff rates by 2.1% points and 1.5% points, respectively. In the case of NTBs, their respective impacts are 6.6% points and 5.7% points. Membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO) does not contribute greatly to reducing tariff rates but does play a significant role in reducing NTBs. These results provide important implications for the literature on numerical assessments of FTAs.

Did Japanese direct investment in Korea suppress indigenous industrialization in the 1930s? : evidence from country-level factory entry patterns

Foreign direct investment (FDI) can deliver both positive and negative spillovers to the local economy. Negative effects such as crowding-out or entry-barrier effects might outweigh the positive ones when the technological gap between foreign and local firms is significant. This paper examines the impact of Japanese direct investment into Korea under colonization in the 1930s on the entry of Korean-owned factories. By using the census of manufacturing factories in Korea, we exploit variations in the share of Japanese factories and their entry rates across counties within the same subsectors. We find that within a subsector, entry rates of Korean factories were higher in counties with higher presence and entry of Japanese factories. Positive correlations are also found between subsectors. The results imply that Japanese direct investment did not suppress the entry of Korean factories and that FDI could exert positive entry spillovers on indigenous firms, even at a very early stage of industrialization.

Role of laboratories for adapting product-related environmental regulations (PRERs)

This paper examines how a country which has been successful in creating agglomeration of a manufacturing industry has faced various types of product-related environmental regulations. Then the paper shows how the government and testing laboratory have taken measures to adapt to PRERs overseas in response to the needs by firms affected by regulations. In reaction to the introductions of PRERs overseas, Malaysia also has introduced equivalent policies domestically, proving that PRERs have spread to Malaysia.

Role of laboratories for adapting product-related environmental regulations (PRERs)

This paper examines how a country which has been successful in creating agglomeration of a manufacturing industry has faced various types of product-related environmental regulations. Then the paper shows how the government and testing laboratory have taken measures to adapt to PRERs overseas in response to the needs by firms affected by regulations. In reaction to the introductions of PRERs overseas, Malaysia also has introduced equivalent policies domestically, proving that PRERs have spread to Malaysia.

Role of laboratories for adapting product-related environmental regulations (PRERs)

This paper examines how a country which has been successful in creating agglomeration of a manufacturing industry has faced various types of product-related environmental regulations. Then the paper shows how the government and testing laboratory have taken measures to adapt to PRERs overseas in response to the needs by firms affected by regulations. In reaction to the introductions of PRERs overseas, Malaysia also has introduced equivalent policies domestically, proving that PRERs have spread to Malaysia.

Role of laboratories for adapting product-related environmental regulations (PRERs)

This paper examines how a country which has been successful in creating agglomeration of a manufacturing industry has faced various types of product-related environmental regulations. Then the paper shows how the government and testing laboratory have taken measures to adapt to PRERs overseas in response to the needs by firms affected by regulations. In reaction to the introductions of PRERs overseas, Malaysia also has introduced equivalent policies domestically, proving that PRERs have spread to Malaysia.

Role of laboratories for adapting product-related environmental regulations (PRERs)

This paper examines how a country which has been successful in creating agglomeration of a manufacturing industry has faced various types of product-related environmental regulations. Then the paper shows how the government and testing laboratory have taken measures to adapt to PRERs overseas in response to the needs by firms affected by regulations. In reaction to the introductions of PRERs overseas, Malaysia also has introduced equivalent policies domestically, proving that PRERs have spread to Malaysia.

The policy impact of product-related environmental regulations in Asia

This paper focuses on EU chemical regulations, RoHS and REACH, and shows these EU regulations have driven Asian countries to introduce regulations that are similar yet modified versions to the EU regulations. Asia as the world manufacturing center has extensive production networks where parts and components of a final good are traded across borders. We discuss how product-related environmental regulations could impact on firms' activities then show that if Asian countries with complex supply chains introduce different product related chemical regulations without coordinating with neighboring countries, it could work as trade barrier for manufacturing activities in the region.

Do electricity supply constraints matter for comparative advantage? : a neoclassical approach

This paper examines the extent to which electricity supply constraints could affect sectoral specialization. For this purpose, an empirical trade model is estimated from 1990-2008 panel data on 15 OECD countries and 12 manufacturing sectors. We find that along with Ricardian technological differences and Heckscher-Ohlin factor-endowment differences, productivity-adjusted electricity capacity drives sectoral specialization in several sectors. Among them, electrical equipment, transport equipment, machinery, chemicals, and paper products will see lower output shares as a result of decreases in productivity-adjusted electricity capacity. Furthermore, our dynamic panel estimation reveals that the effects of Ricardian technological differences dominate in the short-run, and factor endowment differences and productivity-adjusted electricity capacity tend to have a significant effect in only the long-run.

Negative skill sorting across production chains

Previous literature generally predicts that individuals with higher skills work in industries with longer production chains. However, the opposite skill-sorting pattern, a "negative skill-sorting" phenomenon, is also observed in reality. This paper proposes a possible mechanism by which both cases can happen and shows that negative skill sorting is more likely to occur when the quality of intermediate inputs degrade rapidly (or improves slowly) along the production chain. We empirically confirm our theoretical prediction by using country-industry panel data. The results are robust regardless of estimation method, control variables, and industry coverage. This study has important implications for understanding countries' comparative advantages and development patterns.

Does technological progress magnify regional disparities?

We study how technological progress in manufacturing and transportation to-gether with migration costs interact to shape the space-economy. Rising labor productivity in the manufacturing sector fosters the agglomeration of activities, whereas falling transport costs associated with technological and organizational in-novations fosters their dispersion. Since these two forces have been at work for a long time, the final outcome must depend on how drops in the costs of producing and trading goods interact with the various costs borne by migrants. Finally, when labor is heterogeneous, the most efficient workers of the less productive region are the first to move to the more productive region.

The "Catching up" Process of Manufacturing in East Asia

This paper examines the "catching up" process of manufacturing in East Asia within the framework of North and South location. Results of this study indicate that latecomers of the ASEAN Four and China have advanced the "catching up" process. At the same time, second-runners of the Asian NIES have more extensively increased their "catching up" with Japan. Most "catching up" was realized in a very short period in the 1990s, and the advancement of the "catching up" process has moved into various industries from nondurable products to light machinery products. However, it has not yet advanced in heavy machinery such as in the industrial machinery and machine tool industries.

Economic integration, location of industries, and frontier regions : evidence from Cambodia

We examine changes in the location of economic activity in Cambodia between 1998 and 2008 in terms of employment growth. During this period, Cambodia joined ASEAN and increased trade with neighboring countries. Drawing on the predictions of the new economic geography, we focus on frontier regions such as border regions and international port cities. We examine the changing state of manufacturing in Cambodia from its initial concentration in Greater Phnom Penh to its growth in the frontier regions. The results suggest that economic integration and concomitant trade linkages may lead to the industrial development of frontier regions as well as the metropolitan areas in Cambodia.