Exports and productivity growth: first evidence from a continuous treatment approach
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Lüneburg: Institut für Volkswirtschaftslehre der Universität Lüneburg, 2007. (Working paper series in economics; No. 49).
Research output: Working paper › Working papers
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TY - UNPB
T1 - Exports and productivity growth
T2 - first evidence from a continuous treatment approach
AU - Fryges, Helmut
AU - Wagner, Joachim
N1 - Literaturverz. S. 19 - 21
PY - 2007
Y1 - 2007
N2 - A recent survey of 54 micro-econometric studies reveals that exporting firms are more productive than non-exporters. On the other hand, previous empirical studies show that exporting does not necessarily improve productivity. One possible reason for this result is that most previous studies are restricted to analysing the relationship between a firm?s export status and the growth of its labour productivity, using the firms? export status as a binary treatment variable and comparing the performance of exporting and non-exporting firms. In this paper, we apply the newly developed generalised propensity score (GPS) methodology that allows for continuous treatment, that is, different levels of the firms? export activities. Using the GPS method and a large panel data set for German manufacturing firms, we estimate the relationship between a firm?s export-sales ratio and its labour productivity growth rate. We find that there is a causal effect of firms? export activities on labour productivity growth. However, exporting improves labour productivity growth only within a subinterval of the range of firms? export-sales ratios.
AB - A recent survey of 54 micro-econometric studies reveals that exporting firms are more productive than non-exporters. On the other hand, previous empirical studies show that exporting does not necessarily improve productivity. One possible reason for this result is that most previous studies are restricted to analysing the relationship between a firm?s export status and the growth of its labour productivity, using the firms? export status as a binary treatment variable and comparing the performance of exporting and non-exporting firms. In this paper, we apply the newly developed generalised propensity score (GPS) methodology that allows for continuous treatment, that is, different levels of the firms? export activities. Using the GPS method and a large panel data set for German manufacturing firms, we estimate the relationship between a firm?s export-sales ratio and its labour productivity growth rate. We find that there is a causal effect of firms? export activities on labour productivity growth. However, exporting improves labour productivity growth only within a subinterval of the range of firms? export-sales ratios.
KW - Economics
KW - Export-sales ratio
KW - labour productivity
KW - continuous treatment
KW - dose-response function
M3 - Working papers
T3 - Working paper series in economics
BT - Exports and productivity growth
PB - Institut für Volkswirtschaftslehre der Universität Lüneburg
CY - Lüneburg
ER -