Lionel Nesta

Financial Constraints and Firm Export Behaviour

The paper analyzes the link between financial constraints and firm export behavior. Our main finding is that firms enjoying better financial health are more likely to become exporters. The result contrasts with the previous empirical literature which found evidence that export participation improves firm financial health, but not that export starters display any ex-ante financial advantage. On the contrary, we find that financial constraints act as a barrier to export participation. Better access to external financial resources increases the probability to start exporting and also shortens the time before firms decide to serve foreign customers. This finding has important policy implications as it suggests that, in presence of financial markets imperfections, public intervention can be called for to help eficient but financially constrained firms to overcome the sunk entry costs into export markets and expand their activities abroad.

What kind of knowledge can a firm absorb

Economists emphasise the crucial role of absorptive capacity with regard to external knowledge. In this respect, the firms knowledge base determines its ability to recognise, assimilate and exploit externalities. Assuming that a firms absorptive capacity also depends upon the characteristics of external knowledge, this paper analyses the relationship between three basic concepts empirically defined: the fundamental or applied nature of knowledge, the tacit or codified form of knowledge and the absorptive capacity of the firm. Based on an empirical analysis of R&D contracts between Frances largest research institute and industrial firms, we show that a low absorptive capacity inhibits cooperation in R&D. The collaboration concerns mostly applied fields and needs informal interactions to support transfers (such as telephone calls, informal interviews and meetings). A high absorptive capacity extends the assimilation to all kinds of knowledge (applied, fundamental) through all types of vehicles (PhD students, scientific staff, technical devices). Altogether, absorption mechanisms seem to diversify as the firms absorption capacity increases.

University Patenting and its Effects on Academic Research

The paper explores the possible consequences for academic research of increased patenting in European universities. It underlines that most of the policy literature refers to the advantages of university patenting without balancing them against the costs or the risks involved in the activities. We provide a brief description of university patenting activity in Europe examining both university-owned patents and university-invented patents. The review of the literature reveals that unlike the United States, little is known in Europe about the changes taking place in public research as a result of increased patenting and increased institutionalisation of patents. We discuss possible analytical approaches to identify both short-term and long-term effects. Concluding remarks addressing the key issues for future empirical assessments are presented in the last section.

Technology Strategy and Knowledge Dynamics: The Case of Biotech¹

This study starts with the lack of clarity revealed in the literature so far as to whether technology is a source of differentiation between firms. The use of patent data allows the evolution of the technological profiles of 99 firms active in biotechnology-related applications to be traced. It is tested whether firms converge or diverge in terms both of their technology portfolios and of the way in which they combine their sets of technologies. It is found that the sources of technological heterogeneity between firms change over time, even when controlling for inter-sectoral differences (as in such sectors as pharmaceuticals, food processing, or chemicals). In brief, firms rely on an increasingly similar scientific corpus, the exploitation of which is gradually becoming firm specific.

National Patterns of Technology Accumulation: Use of Patent Statistics

We use US Patent Statistics to depict national patterns of technology accumulation in Japan and EU countries. Two properties of country profiles are confirmed, namely, stability over time with a country and differentiation across countries. The main novelty introduced here is the combined analysis of overall technological advantage, performance in fast growing areas and impact. The results show that in many areas of technology in which EU countries have an overall relative advantage, their performance in the subfields of highest technological opportunity is weak. On the other hand, Japan seems to have a consistent level of performance both in aggregate and in fast growing areas.

Industry Life Cycle, Knowledge Generation and Technological Networks

This paper examines the links between the rhythm of knowledge generation, the types of actors involved in knowledge generation and the structure of networks of collaborations in the biotech sector. The analysis departs from all biotechnology patent applications covered by Derwent Biotechnology Abstracts (DBA). In 2001, more than 96,000 patents are reported in DBA, covering 40 intellectual property authorities. First, the number of patent applications is continuously increasing, though the number of radical innovations (new technological arrangements) reaches rapidly a steady state. Second, both the number of actors and the number of collaborations follow a bell shape, thus seeming to positively correlate with the rate of technological

Financial Constraints and Firm Export Behavior

The paper analyzes the link between financial constraints and firm export behavior. Our main finding is that firms enjoying better financial health are more likely to become exporters. The result contrasts with the previous empirical literature which found evidence that export participation improves firm financial health, but not that export starters display any ex-ante financial advantage. On the contrary, we find that financial constraints act as a barrier to export participation. Better access to external financial resources increases the probability to start exporting and also shortens the time before firms decide to serve foreign customers. This finding has important policy implications as it suggests that, in presence of financial markets imperfections, public intervention can be called for to help eficient but financially constrained firms to overcome the sunk entry costs into export markets and expand their activities abroad.(This abstract was borrowed from another version of this item.)

Environmental Policies, Product Market Regulation and Innovation in Renewable Energy

We investigate the effectiveness of policies in favor of innovation in renewable energy under different levels of competition. Using information regarding renewable energy policies, product market regulation and high-quality green patents for OECD countries since the late 1970s, we develop a pre-sample mean count-data econometric specification that also accounts for the endogeneity of policies. We find that renewable energy policies are significantly more effective in fostering green innovation in countries with deregulated energy markets. We also find that public support for renewable energy is crucial only in the generation of high-quality green patents, whereas competition enhances the generation of green patents irrespective of their quality.

Threshold Policy Effects and Directed Technical Change in Energy Innovation

This paper analyzes the effect of environmental policies on the direction of energy innovation across countries over the period 1990-2012. Our novelty is to use threshold regression models to allow for discontinuities in policy effectiveness depending on a countrys relative competencies in renewable and fossil fuel technologies. We show that the dynamic incentives of environmental policies become effective just above the median level of relative competencies. In this critical second regime, market-based policies are moderately effective in promoting renewable innovation, while command-and-control policies depress fossil based innovation. Finally, market-based policies are more effective to consolidate a green comparative advantage in the last regime. We illustrate how our approach can be used for policy design in laggard countries.

Disparités locales et crise économique éclairages préliminaires

L’etude empirique des zones d’emploi sur donnees d’entreprises montre que les performances de ces zones ne sont exclusivement attribuables ni a leur structure sectorielle ni a la phase du cycle economique. Il existe des effets propres a chaque territoire qui expliqueraient valeur ajoutee, investissement et emploi. Ces effets s’inscrivent dans un contexte de changement structurel qui se dessine au detriment des industries manufacturieres et au benefice des activites dites de services de haute technologie.