James A. Brox

Estimating Willingness to Pay for Improved Water Quality in the Presence of Item Nonresponse Bias

This article deals with the problem of item nonresponse in contingent valuation surveys using a payment-card method, by applying a grouped-data sample-selection estimation technique that is capable of imputing the missing values conditional upon a respondents decision to answer a willingness-to-pay question. The advantage of the technique lies in its ability to utilize all of the information in the sample, permitting a more efficient estimation in the presence of item nonresponse bias. The major determinants of willingness to pay appear to be household income, number of children, education, perception of existing water quality, and identification with environmental issues. Copyright 2003, Oxford University Press.

The set of just-in-time management strategies: An assessment of their impact on plant-level productivity and input-factor substitutability using variable cost function estimates

Many manufacturers in the automobile industry around the world have adopted the just-in-time (JIT) set of management strategies in an effort to improve productivity, efficiency and product quality. This paper provides empirical evidence that supports the idea that JIT manufacturing environments are, in fact, more productive than their non-JIT counterparts. Plant-level cross-sectional data from auto-parts manufacturing firms are used to estimate variable cost functions for a JIT group as well as for a non-JIT group of plants. Differences in cost function characteristics between the two groups are examined and discussed.

Assessing the impact of JIT using economic theory

Abstract This paper combines ideas that are well founded in the production and inventory management literature, with analytical approaches that have been long established in the economic theory literature, to reveal and explore production-function characteristic differences between JIT producers and non-JIT producers among electronic firms in Ontario, Canada. The methodology employed is the estimation of the CES-TL total cost system. Our primary conclusion is that JIT firms are more cost-efficient and appear to be distinct from the non-JIT group. This conclusion is supported by: (1) the fact that, in most cases, the elasticities calculated from the two groups of firms are significantly different; (2) the fact that the cost elasticity with respect to output is lower for the JIT firms than for the non-JIT firms, indicating that the former are better able to capture economies of scale and density; (3) the difference between the elasticities of factor productivity, with respect to output changes, shows the JIT firms as being more labor- and materials-saving than the non-JIT firms.

Infrastructure investment and Canadian manufacturing productivity

This paper examines the relationship between Canadian public infrastructure and private output using a Constant Elasticity and Substitution-Translog (CES-TL) cost model to describe the interaction of the public and private sectors. The CES-TL was first specified by Pollak et al. (1984). We find public capital a substitute for private capital within the Canadian manufacturing sector. Additionally, the services of public capital enhance the productivity of private capital. Canadian manufacturing costs are characterized by economies of scale, indicating that less than optimal plant sizes dominated Canadian manufacturing sector during the study period. Advances in disembodied technical progress are also indicated.

Interfuel and interfactor substitution in Ontario manufacturing, 1962-82

The extent of substitutability between energy and the other factors (i.e. labour and capital) is an extremely important question and quite central to energy policy, planning and analysis. This paper addresses this question for the Ontario manufacturing sector. The theoretical model utilized in this analysis is the two–stage translog production frontier. The model was estimated for seven manufacturing sectors using four disaggregated energy inputs and labour and capital. The model was estimated by the FIML technique for the period 1962–82.

VALUING CAMPSITE CHARACTERISTICS: A GENERALIZED TRAVEL-COST MODEL OF DEMAND FOR RECREATIONAL CAMPING

In this paper we develop and estimate a traval-cost model of demand for recreational camping in the provincial parks of the Province of Ontario, Canada, in the spirit of the Vaughan-Russell contribution.

CHANGING PATTERNS OF REGIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL TRADE: The Case of Canada Under NAFTA

Recently, the issue of regional and international trade flows has attracted increased attention. Papers by Helliwell and McCallum have stressed the importance of national borders in determining the nature of Canadian economic activity even when adjustments are made for distance and trade barriers. This article, using Provincial Economic Accounts data, estimates an almost ideal demand system to explain the interprovincial and international flow of goods, accounting for changes in relative prices and other factors that have arisen since the formation of NAFTA. The results allow conclusions to be drawn with respect to the importance of geographical proximity to the U.S. border, the influence of price and income elasticities, and the nature of the industrial/resource endowment mix of the province. The relevant elasticities allow for the examination changes to the internal and external trade patterns and to the differences which have developed in the various regions of Canada.

Forecasting Canadian consumption using the Dynamic Generalized Linear Expenditure System (DGLES)

This paper uses the Dynamic Generalized Linear Expenditure System (Dgles) to: 1. study the behaviour of the Canadian consumer; and 2. provide ex postforecasts of consumption expenditures by commodity group. The model is estimated for seven commodity groups (durables, food, fuel, gasoline, other non-durables, semi-durables and services) using quarterly data covering the period 1961.I–1978.IV. The method of estimation is the full information maximum likelihood routine, and the ex postforecasts are provided for the period 1979.I–1981.IV.

A short-run assessment of the effects of VAT on consumption patterns: the Greek experience

The short-run effects of value-added tax (VAT) on individual commodity prices, the consumer price index, and the allocation patterns of total consumption expenditures among groups of commodities in Greece are evaluated. The methodological approach used is based on the static almost ideal demand system (AIDS), which was estimated and tested for thirteen commodity groups using time-series data (1958–86). The FIML approach was used for the estimation of the AIDS. The model was simulated for the post-VAT period. The principal results indicate that VAT has changed the structure of prices and demand, altered the pre-VAT allocation of total consumption expenditures among the groups of goods and services and raised the overall consumer price index.

The urban housing market: A new approach for estimating demand for housing by dwelling type

Abstract A new approach for estimating urban housing demand by dwelling type is suggested and tested empirically. The approach is based on the assumption that households choose their residential location and dwelling type in a way to maximize the communal utility. The model used is the Dynamic General Linear Expenditure System which allows determination of (1) urban housing demand by dwelling type, and (2) expenditure and own- and cross-price elasticities (compensated and uncompensated).