Jose Miguel Benavente

The role of research and innovation in promoting productivity in chile

Abstract Abstract Abstract This paper continues the empirical research line started by Crepon et al. (1998) about the impact of research and development on innovation and innovation on productivity of firms. In this paper we estimate a structural model using Asymptotic Least Squares (ALS) which corrects for selectivity and simultaneity biases taking in consideration the particular characteristics of the available data. We find that most of the Schumpeterian hypotheses are confirmed: research and innovative activities are related with firm size and market power. However, in the case of Chile, firms productivity is not affected by innovative results nor by research expenditures in the short run.This paper continues the empirical research line started by Crepon et al. (Crepon, B., Duguet, E. and Mairesse, J. (1998) Research, Innovation, and Productivity: An Econometric Analysis at the Firm Level. Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 7(2), 115–158.) about the impact of research and development on innovation and innovation on productivity of firms. In this paper, we estimate a structural model using asymptotic least squares, which corrects for selectivity and simultaneity biases taking into consideration the particular characteristics of the available data. We find that most of the Schumpeterian hypotheses are confirmed: research and innovative activities are related with firm size and market power. However, in the case of Chile, firms’ productivity is not affected by innovative results, nor by research expenditures in the short run.

Debt composition and balance sheet effects of exchange rate depreciations: a firm-level analysis for Chile

Abstract By studying the behavior of foreign currency borrowing, maturity, sales and the investment decisions of firms listed in the Chilean Stock Exchange from 1994 to 2001, this paper assesses whether in the aftermath of the Asian crisis of the late 1990s the depreciation of the local currency (Chilean peso) affected these firms’ real and financial decisions. At issue is the contrast between a negative net-worth effect and a potential expansionary competitiveness effect for the tradable sector. We find that there exists little evidence that devaluations cause a positive impact on investment and sales for firms with dollar denominated debt. The maturity structure of Chilean firms is mainly explained by the size of the companies. Large firms will have a debt structure biased to higher maturities. Analyzing dollar denominated debt composition the evidence shows that larger firms maintained a higher proportion of dollar denominated debt reflecting the development of the financial sector in Chile.

Estimando la Demanda Residencial por Electricidad en Chile: El Consumo es Sensible al Precio

We estimate the demand for electricity by households in Chile. We use a monthly panel of 18 distribution companies, which starts in January 1995 and runs through december 2001. The one-month price elasticity of demand is -0.0548 and -0,39 in the long run.

New problems and opportunities for industrial development in Latin America

The paper considers the extent to which trade liberalization, de-regulation of economic activity, privatization of public assets and more careful management of macroeco-nomic aggregates, are affecting Latin America. The background, set in import substituting industrialization, has given way to transition towards a new productive structure and new methods of organization of manufacturing activity. Part of that is the relative rise of industries based on the processing of resources. Industrial labour productivity improved in the early 1990s after a long period of stagnation, which became very apparent in the 1980s, though the achievement of an 8% per annum rate, and much shedding of labour, has been insufficient to close the gap which exists with the US. The paper comments on the difficulties of understanding transition in the context of economic theory. (This abstract was borrowed from another version of this item.)

Anti-Crime Programs: An Evaluation of the Comuna Segura Program

The aim of this paper is to evaluate the impact that the anti-crime program Comuna Segura: Compromiso 100 had on the reporting rate of different types of crimes. This program, implemented in Chile starting in 2001, was very highly criticized and, therefore, was eliminated in 2006. This paper provides statistical evidence, using the impact assessment methodology, which shows that the program was successful in increasing the reporting rate in targeted municipalities and also in decreasing levels of crimes associated with other crimes, such as rape. All this underlies the importance of carrying out formal impact assessments in order to determine benefits that are associated with a particular program. However, financial issues are also very important too and it is necessary to take them in account when making a fair statement about the cost-effectiveness of the program. This point is, however, not addressed in this paper but should be kept in mind in order to have a complete picture of the program.

Economic crisis and organisational change in developing countries: evidence from Chile

Recent theoretical models have shown that when demand is slack, firms tend to introduce new management practices and/or reorganise their production methods; however, few microeconometric studies deal directly with the relationship between organisational change and economic crises. In this paper, we use data from Chilean manufacturing plants, and the international financial crisis of 1998 to shed light on this phenomenon. Using National Survey of Technological Innovation statistics for two years, both before and during the financial crisis, we study how different measures of organisational change responded to the economic crisis. In addition, we analyse the impact on product and process innovation. Our results are consistent with the idea that economic crises may have some effect on organisational change, but it is not limited to this specific type of innovation. We find that economic crisis may also spur the development of new products and process.

The Industrialization of Chile during Protectionism, 1940–82

The objective of this chapter is to present an evaluation of the process of industrialization of Chile during the period 1940–82. The concept of industrialization is understood in the broadest sense, including industrial development as well as institutional modernization and social transformation. During the four decades which elapsed from the beginning of the 1940s, the Chilean economy completed a cycle of its economic development and began a new phase. The cycle of the so-called ‘development from within’, which had begun with the 1930s crisis, culminated in 1973–74 with the breakdown of the democratic regime.1 Throughout the decade of the 1940s the industrial growth rate reached an average of 8 per cent a year but thereafter declined perceptibly (Munoz, 1995). For the entire period 1950–71, an annual growth rate of 5.4 per cent has been estimated, well below the Latin American average for this period which reached 6.7 per cent (Benavente et al. 1996, table 4).

Interaction between product market and labour market power: evidence from France, Belgium and Chile

This article jointly estimates price-cost mark-ups and union bargaining power of manufacturing firms in France, Belgium and Chile. Our GMM results provide strong evidence of price-cost mark-ups being underestimated when labour market imperfections are ignored, corresponding to the omission of the part of product rents captured by the workers.

The New Imperative of Innovation: Policy Perspectives for Latin America and the Caribbean

The main purpose of this study is to present the conceptual basis that supports science, technology, and innovation (STI) policy in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). It starts by clarifying STI relationship, both conceptual and empirical, to economic growth and it explains how market and coordination failures hinder innovation. Then, it discusses a variety of demand- and supply-side policies aimed at addressing these private sector and institutional insufficiencies. In the specific case of LAC, it examines the regions underperformance in innovation relative to both emerging and advanced economies, and analyses the degree to which scientific productivity and knowledge inputs have led to accelerated economic development. Finally, the publication presents five dimensions of success for STI policies based on international best practices that should stimulate innovation and economic growth and guide the IDBs work in STI in the region.