Matías Braun

Competition and Productivity Growth in South Africa

This article shows that mark-ups are significantly higher in South African manufacturing industries than they are in corresponding industries worldwide. We test for the consequences of this low-level of product market competition on productivity growth. The results of the paper are that high mark-ups have a large negative impact on productivity growth in South African manufacturing industry. Our results are robust to three different data sources, two alternative measures of productivity growth, and three distinct measures of the mark-up. Controlling for potential endogeneity of regressors does not eliminate the findings.

The Politics of Financial Development: Evidence from Trade Liberalization

Incumbents in various industries have different incentives to promote or oppose financial development. Changes in the relative strength of promoter and opponent industries thus result in changes in the political equilibrium level of financial development. We conduct an event study using a sample of 41 countries that liberalized trade during 1970 to 2000, and show that the strengthening of promoter relative to opponent industries resulting from liberalization is a good predictor of subsequent financial development. The benefits of developing the financial system are insufficient for financial development, and rents in particular hands appear to be necessary to achieve it. Copyright (c) 2008 by The American Finance Association.

Financial Contractability and Asset Hardness

One characteristic of poorly developed capital markets is the disproportionate weight that the availability of hard assets has in the allocation of financial funds. Where financial contractibility is poor, external finance requires higher proportions of assets that more easily remain with investors if the relationship deteriorates. Consistent with this view, I show that industries with less tangible assets perform disproportionately worse in terms of growth and GDP contribution in countries with poorly developed financial systems. The more dependent the industry is on external finance, the larger the impact. Firm-level evidence also confirms finance as the link: leverage is less sensitive to tangibility in better-working capital markets.

Banking on Politics

This paper presents new data from 150 countries showing that former cabinet members, central bank governors, and financial regulators are many orders of magnitude more likely than other citizens to become board members of banks. Countries where the politician-banker phenomenon is more prevalent have higher corruption and more powerful yet less accountable governments, but not better functioning financial systems. Regulation becomes more pro-banker where this happens more often. Furthermore, a higher fraction of the rents that are created accrue to bankers, former politicians are not more likely to be directors when their side is in power, and banks are more profitable without being more leveraged. Rather than supporting a public interest view, the evidence is consistent with a capture-type private interest story where, in exchange for a non-executive position at a bank in the future, politicians provide for beneficial regulation.

DOES FINANCE ALTER THE RELATION BETWEEN INEQUALITY AND GROWTH?: FINANCE, INEQUALITY, AND GROWTH

This paper introduces a model in which greater inequality reduces growth in economies with low levels of financial development but that this effect is attenuated in economies with more developed systems. The model also predicts that individuals in economies with developed financial markets have a higher tolerance to inequality. Using a panel dataset that covers a large number of countries, this paper shows empirical evidence that is consistent with the main predictions of the model. Overall, this papers major findings highlight that some of the pernicious effects of inequality can be attenuated by improving access to credit. (JEL D3, E6, P1, O4, I2)

How Do Investment, Fundamentals and Stock Prices Relate Around the World?

We assemble a novel data set of industry panel data for the corporate sector and the entire economy across a number of countries to explore the connection between investment and stock prices. The link is present in all samples, in both the aggregate and industry dimensions, and increases with stock market development. Fundamentals are less related to prices in underdeveloped markets but are similarly related to investment everywhere. Thus, the active informant interpretation does not seem to be the main force behind the stock market–investment relationship. In addition, industries that are more dependent on equity finance, and where investors are strongest, exhibit higher sensitivity to prices, especially in developed markets.

Supply Matters for Asset Prices: Evidence from Ipos in Emerging Markets

We show that the introduction of a new asset affects the prices of previously existing assets in a market. Using data from 254 IPOs in emerging markets, we find that stocks in industries that covary highly with the industry of the IPO experience a larger decline in prices relative to other stocks during the month of the IPO. The effects are stronger when the IPO is issued in a market that is less integrated internationally, and when the IPO is big. The evidence supports the idea that the composition of asset supply affects the cross-section of stock prices.