Misallocation and reallocation of resources in Vietnamese manufacturing firms

PurposeThis research identifies the level of misallocation in Vietnamese manufacturing sector for the period 2000–2015. Meltiz and Polanec dynamic productivity decomposition is used to compare the relative productivity contributions from surviving, entering and exiting firms to aggregate productivity change by the type of ownership. Heckman's two-step model is used to examine the effect of misallocation and industry- and firm-level factors on entry or exit decision and market share of firms in Vietnamese manufacturing sector.Design/methodology/approachThe level of misallocation and efficiency gains in total factor productivity (TFP) are assessed using Hsieh and Klenow (2009) productivity decomposition framework for the period 2000–2015. The dynamic productivity decomposition of Meltiz and Polanec (2015) is used to compare the relative contributions from surviving, entering and exiting firms to aggregate productivity change. The effects of misallocation and other factors on entry or exit decisions and market share of firms are determined by using Heckman choice model.FindingsThe results indicate three main points. Firstly, resource misallocation is found to be highest among state-owned enterprise (SOEs) and low technology industries. TFP is found to 81.2% greater if there is no resource misallocation among firms. Secondly, the aggregate productivity change for the entering, exiting and surviving firms is 35% due to productivity reallocation among three groups. Finally, the decision of entry or exit as well as the market share of firms are influenced by misallocation and industry- and firm-level factors such as Vietnam's WTO entry, tax policy, financial frictions, industrial concentration, technology gap, capital intensity, human capital, scale of firm, time entry and FDI spillovers. The result finds the higher misallocation level is, the lower the probability and market share for a new firm to enter in the industry is.Research limitations/implicationsThe main limitation of the study is that the market is assumed perfectly competitive and the method has only decomposed misallocation of resources to those arising from output and capital distortions. The results of Heckman choice model only clarify on the sub-sample of state-owned enterprises and low technology firms.Originality/valueThe focus of many previous research papers on resource misallocation was generally to look at the level of misallocation in developed countries. However, knowledge about the effect of misallocation and other factors on entry or exit decisions and market share of firms is limited, particularly in the context of developing countries. This paper clarifies the level of misallocation in Vietnamese manufacturing sector and the effect of misallocation and other factors on entry or exit decisions and market share of firms.

Przemiany i uwarunkowania wydajności pracy w rolnictwie Unii Europejskiej w latach 2005-2016

The main aim of the work was to present the changes observed in the labour productivity in EU agriculture in years 2005-2016. The author proposed also the methodical decomposition of the labor productivity ratio in agriculture. Seven factors (ratios) have been taken into account in three models of labor productivity decomposition. These factors are: inputs productivity, land productivity, value added index, production taxation, production subsidies, equipment employed in agricultural land and the level of agricultural production intensity. The use of the deterministic method allowed to analyse the changes in labour productivity from the perspectives both in the EU agriculture (EU-28) and in the Polish agriculture. Performed studies seems to prove that in the years 2005-2016 the labor productivity measured by gross value added increased in case of EU-28 by average 2.13% and in the case of EU-15 only by 0.98%. At the same time, higher increase was observed in the case of EU-13 which equal to 3.45%. It may suggest that can be observe the ongoing process of the labor productivity convergence in EU agriculture. In the light of deterministic analysis, it was possible to specify the main factors contributing to the increase in labor productivity in agriculture in the EU-28 and in Poland, which are the increase in production intensity and the increase in agricultural land/labour relation. However, it should be also noted that the favorable direction of changes in labour productivity was weakened by the decreasing efficiency of production measured by the inputs productivity and the share of value added in revenues.

Resource misallocation of SMEs in Vietnamese manufacturing sector

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine resource misallocation among Vietnam’s small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the manufacturing sector. The paper also aims to consider selective factors on reducing the level of resource misallocation in SMEs. Design/methodology/approach Resource misallocation and efficiency gains in total factor productivity (TFP) are assessed using Vietnam’s annual enterprise survey data for the period 2000–2015 and an appropriate productivity decomposition framework. Findings Resource misallocation is found to be higher among SMEs than large scale enterprises. TFP is found to 116.3 per cent greater if there is no resource misallocation among SMEs. Smaller scale, lower market concentration, trade liberalisation and corruption control are found to be associated with lower level of resource misallocation in SMEs. Research limitations/implications The major limitation of this study is that it has only decomposed misallocation of resources arising from output and capital distortions and that it focusses on selective factors contribution to reducing misallocation level in SMEs. Originality/value Resource misallocation is attracting attention in both developed and developing countries. However, knowledge about resource misallocation among SMEs is limited, particularly in the context of developing countries. This paper assesses the level of resource misallocation among SMEs in Vietnamese manufacturing sector.

Changes in belowground biodiversity during ecosystem development

Belowground organisms play critical roles in maintaining multiple ecosystem processes, including plant productivity, decomposition, and nutrient cycling. Despite their importance, however, we have a limited understanding of how and why belowground biodiversity (bacteria, fungi, protists, and invertebrates) may change as soils develop over centuries to millennia (pedogenesis). Moreover, it is unclear whether belowground biodiversity changes during pedogenesis are similar to the patterns observed for aboveground plant diversity. Here we evaluated the roles of resource availability, nutrient stoichiometry, and soil abiotic factors in driving belowground biodiversity across 16 soil chronosequences (from centuries to millennia) spanning a wide range of globally distributed ecosystem types. Changes in belowground biodiversity during pedogenesis followed two main patterns. In lower-productivity ecosystems (i.e., drier and colder), increases in belowground biodiversity tracked increases in plant cover. In more productive ecosystems (i.e., wetter and warmer), increased acidification during pedogenesis was associated with declines in belowground biodiversity. Changes in the diversity of bacteria, fungi, protists, and invertebrates with pedogenesis were strongly and positively correlated worldwide, highlighting that belowground biodiversity shares similar ecological drivers as soils and ecosystems develop. In general, temporal changes in aboveground plant diversity and belowground biodiversity were not correlated, challenging the common perception that belowground biodiversity should follow similar patterns to those of plant diversity during ecosystem development. Taken together, our findings provide evidence that ecological patterns in belowground biodiversity are predictable across major globally distributed ecosystem types and suggest that shifts in plant cover and soil acidification during ecosystem development are associated with changes in belowground biodiversity over centuries to millennia.

Pesticides and Their Impact on Aquatic Microorganisms

Microorganisms are the most dominant natives of aquatic ecosystems, where they fulfill very specific roles in primary productivity, decomposition, and nutrient cycling. Microorganisms get naturally exposed to pesticides in aquatic environments by the direct and indirect supply. The microorganism can make use of components entering the environment as feeding substrate for building material or a source of energy thus affecting balance in the ecosystem. Natural population possesses a number of responses to these contaminants, and quickest reaction has been reported from the microorganisms. Pesticides may affect the population dynamics by controlling individual reproduction, survival, and by changing sex ratio. The following patterns are recognized as effects of pesticides at the ecosystem and community levels like an increase of species richness reduction of energy transfer efficiency from primary producers to top predators. Thus, the purpose of this chapter is to review the significance of pesticides and their effects on aquatic microorganism and to study their ecological significance.

PRODUCTIVITY DECOMPOSITION AS A SCIENTIFIC METHOD OF SOLOW’S PARADOX STUDIES ON THE EXAMPLE OF POLISH AGRI-FOOD INDUSTRY

The paper presents the method of productivity decomposition consisting in the separate examination of its four functional aspects: performance, profitability, financial liquidity and debt level. As research tools, this method uses synthetic indicators describing the level of advancement of ICT and logistic solutions used, on the one hand, and financial indicators on the other in combination with correlation coefficients. The obtained results made it possible to verify the occurrence of Solow’s productivity paradox in the Polish food industry, pointing to the imperatives of its occurrence in various areas of productivity. null