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Impact of the feed-in-tariff exemption on energy consumption in Japanese industrial plants Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2024-03-01 Aline Mortha, Naonari Yajima, Toshi H. Arimura
To promote renewable energy deployment, Japan introduced a feed-in tariff policy in 2012, financed through a surcharge on electricity prices for consumers. The Japanese government also offered a discount system for electricity-intensive industrial plants, exempting them from paying full surcharges. Using monthly plant-level data from 2005 to 2018, this study evaluated the exemption system’s impact
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Impact of the Kuroda Bazooka on Japanese households’ borrowing intentions Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2024-02-16 Hiroshi Gunji
This study examines the impact of a monetary policy by the Bank of Japan on households’ willingness to borrow, that was announced on October 31, 2014. This policy, known as Kuroda Bazooka, was not anticipated by the private sector; therefore, it could be regarded as an exogenous shock. To estimate the effects of the Kuroda Bazooka, this study used interrupted time series analysis, a technique often
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International business cycle synchronization: A synthetic assessment Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2024-02-06 Hyun-Hoon Lee, Cyn-Young Park, Ju Hyun Pyun
We synthetically assess the three major transmission channels of international business cycles: bilateral trade, foreign direct investment (FDI), and portfolio investment flows between countries, while considering country-time heterogeneity with multiple fixed effects. Using the data of 65 countries during 2004–2019, we find that real and financial integration generates heterogeneous impacts on business
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The impact of demographic change on the natural rate of interest in Japan Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2024-01-03 Fei Han
This paper develops a semi-structural model to estimate the impact of demographic changes on the natural rate of interest in Japan. We find that demographic changes have a significantly negative impact on the natural rate by lowering the trend potential growth. We also find that the negative impact has increased over time amid stronger demographic headwinds. A lower natural rate of interest could challenge
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How competitiveness evolved in the Japanese bank loan market between 1977 and 2020 Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-12-14 Tomoya Maruyama
In this study, I estimate the degree of competition in the Japanese loan market using a new empirical industrial organization method. With it, I conduct a long-term analysis of more than 40 years that includes the effect of financial deregulation prior to 2000. The model adopts an appropriate identification strategy in the estimation by introducing a rotation term to the demand function. This study
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Effects of alternative pricing structures on electricity consumption and payments in the commercial and industrial sector Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-11-17 Asahi Oshiro, Nori Tarui
We investigate the distributional and welfare impacts when commercial and industrial (C&I) electricity end users face a dynamic pricing structure as opposed to a constant volumetric price with demand charge on individual users’ peak usage. While demand charge does not necessarily reduce the system-wide peak, it often constitutes a large share of C&I users’ payments. Hourly electricity consumption data
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Impacts of inter-firm relations on the adoption of remote work: Evidence from a survey in Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-10-13 Eiichi Tomiura, Hiroshi Kumanomido
During the COVID-19 pandemic, remote work suddenly attracted attention. This paper focuses on inter-firm relations, as the costs and benefits of introducing remote work are likely to differ depending on the firms’ relationships with other firms. We combine our unique survey on the responses of Japanese manufacturers or wholesalers to the COVID-19 pandemic with transaction relation data. We find that
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Simulated effects of carbon pricing on industrial sector energy use Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-10-12 Hyungna Oh, Jae Yoon Lee, Eunmi Jeong, Jee Young Kim
The aim of this paper is to analyze the simulated effects of carbon pricing on South Korea's industrial sector by using carbon pricing scenarios. The estimation results show that carbon taxation is highly effective to reduce carbon emissions of industrial sector only when the changes of energy mix take place. If the energy mix remain unchanged, the level of carbon tax should be higher than 60,000 Korean
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Indonesian capital city relocation and regional economy's transition toward less carbon-intensive economy: An inter-regional CGE analysis Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-09-21 Arief A. Yusuf, Elizabeth L. Roos, J. Mark Horridge, Djoni Hartono
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Reliability and forced outages: Survival analysis with recurrent events Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-09-04 Majah-Leah V. Ravago, Karl Robert Jandoc, Miah Maye Pormon
This paper empirically investigates the contributory factors to forced outage declarations of power plants through a survival analysis model with recurrent events. Using plant-level data in the Philippines, we find that higher reserve margins, higher share capacity (a measure of concentration), and the number of planned outages and days since the last maintenance (preventive maintenance indicators)
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Estimating the value of energy storage: The role of pumped hydropower in the electricity supply network Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-08-23 Chihiro Yagi, Kenji Takeuchi
This study explores the role of storage systems in reducing the variability of renewable power, focusing on pumped hydropower storage (PHS) systems. We regress the hourly storage by PHS on the hourly solar power generation to estimate the average amount of solar power generation stored by PHS systems. We adopt an instrumental variable approach to mitigate any endogeneity concerns, in which a weighted
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To use or not to use, that is the question: Income and substitution effects in the feed-in tariff system for solar-generated electricity Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-08-22 Xinyue Yang, Shigeru Matsumoto
Feed-in tariff (FIT) is an important worldwide initiative to encourage renewable electricity technologies. Under the Japanese FIT system, households with solar panels decide the amount of both self-consumption and sales to the power company. By analyzing the household self-consumption and sales behaviors of solar-generated electricity obtained from the Ministry of the Environment of Japan, we examine
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Relevant markets and market power of mobile apps Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-08-06 Kohei Kawaguchi, Toshifumi Kuroda, Susumu Sato
Antitrust investigations in the mobile app economy often require a definition of the relevant market of mobile apps and the evaluation of their market power. However, existing antitrust tools face significant challenges due to the non-price nature of mobile apps with multiple revenue sources, two competition margins at the mobile OS and mobile app levels, and the switching costs involved in the choice
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State-dependent effects of the unconventional monetary policy in stock markets Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-08-03 Toyoichiro Shirota
This study analyzes the state-dependent effect of the Bank of Japan (BoJ)’s intervention in stock markets from 2013 to 2017. A causal inference on such intervention is difficult because of the self-selective behavior of central banks. To address this problem, I apply the propensity score method in a time series context, exploiting stock price information of a single day. The key finding is that the
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Unconventional monetary policy and the bond market in Japan: A new Keynesian perspective Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-07-13 Parantap Basu, Kenji Wada
Using the lens of a medium scale DSGE model, we analyze macroeconomic effects of Japan’s unconventional monetary policy which is known as Qualitative and Quantitative Easing (QQE). Our focus is on the bond market. The model features: (i) commercial bank’s demand for excess reserve in response to liquidity risk and (ii) linkage among central bank, commercial banks and the government via government bonds
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What caused the downward trend in Japan’s labor share? Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-07-11
Measuring the labor share is not an easy task. Labor share movements often vary depending on both their definition and the measurement scope. This study estimates the labor share in Japan based on two representative government statistical sources—the National Accounts and the “Financial Statements Statistics of Corporations by Industry” —with their differences in coverage and accounting standards corrected
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A note on conglomerate mergers: The Google/Fitbit case Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-06-28 Akihiko Nakagawa, Noriaki Matsushima
We consider conglomerate mergers using the Google/Fitbit case as an example. First, summarizing the importance of conglomerate merger control and the current enforcement standards for such mergers by competition laws, we briefly describe a review of the Google/Fitbit merger by the Japan Fair Trade Commission. Next, we explain the background of the merger and introduce Chen et al. (2022), who theoretically
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Evaluation of fiscal policy using alternative GDP data in Japan Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-06-27 Shin-ichi Fukuda
In macroeconomics, the effectiveness of fiscal policy is an old, but new controversial question that has been debated for many years. The controversy naturally arises if analytical frameworks, sample periods, or targeted countries are different. However, it sometimes arises, even when using similar analytical frameworks and sample periods. The purpose of this study is to explore whether revisions to
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How does excessive volatility of consumption vary across countries? Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-06-29 Khaliun Dovchinsuren
I revisit the excess volatility of the consumption puzzle, a feature often observed in developing and emerging economies. I assess how the excess volatility of consumption varies across countries by incorporating interrelation between countries’ commodity dependence and income level. This is estimated in the context of the excess sensitivity of the consumption to output using cross-country panel data
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The effects of quantitative easing policy on bank lending: Evidence from Japanese regional banks Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-05-26 Kozo Harimaya, Toshiki Jinushi
This paper examines the response of Japanese regional banks to the quantitative easing operations conducted by the Bank of Japan (BOJ) using semiannual bank-level data from 2001 to 2020. Many regional banks predominantly focus on lending business in their local areas so that, unlike some previous literature, we control for the local economic conditions. We found that, compared with the pre-QQE period
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Why is Japan’s carbon emissions from road transportation declining? Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-05-24 Yoshifumi Konishi, Sho Kuroda
Average fuel efficiency of vehicles improved substantially over the last three decades in Japan. Yet, the carbon emissions from on-road passenger vehicles continued to increase until 2000, and then turned to a steadily declining trend. We empirically investigate this disparity. To that end, we apply an analogue of the Copeland-Taylor decomposition, combined with an empirically estimated behavioral
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Why is the forecast error of quarterly GDP in Japan so large? – From an international comparison of quarterly GDP forecast situation Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-04-14 Yasuyuki komaki
We examined the accuracy of prediction of Canada, Japan, United Kingdom, and United States from the viewpoint of forecast errors. Compared with the forecast error of each country at the around same time, the forecast error of Japan is about 2 times larger. In case of Japan, even immediately before release of quarterly GDP, the forecast error is over 1 %, which is the same level of forecast error as
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Self-preferencing by platforms: A literature review Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-03-27 Yuta Kittaka, Susumu Sato, Yusuke Zennyo
We survey the economics literature on dual-role platforms and self-preferencing by them. Existing studies mainly consist of theoretical studies, but there are also some empirical studies. Regardless of whether it is theoretical or empirical, many studies on self-preferencing are concerned with the manipulation of search results and recommendation algorithms. Some recent studies have examined first-party
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What hinders digital communication? Evidence from foreign firms in Japan Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-03-21 Kiyoyasu Tanaka
Digital technology such as virtual meetings is key to communication and collaboration. However, a firm-level survey in Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic shows that foreign firms regarded digital communication as a key business obstacle. This paper estimates the determinants of the likelihood that foreign firms regard digital communication as an obstacle. The results show that digital communication
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Management innovations in family firms after CEO successions: Evidence from Japanese SMEs Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-03-24 Hirofumi Uchida, Kazuo Yamada, Alberto Zazzaro
We examine management innovation of family and non-family firms after CEO successions by using data of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Japan. Consistent with predictions based on the resource-based view and agency theory, we find that family firms managed by non-family professional CEO successors are less innovative than those managed by family CEO successors or non-family firms. Further
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A 50-year history of “zombie firms” in Japan: How banks and shareholders have been involved in corporate bailouts? Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-03-16 Jun-ichi Nakamura
We review long-term changes in “zombie firms” in Japan over this half-century using listed firm data with a framework in which the concept of “zombie firms” includes possible efficient bailouts. The first wave of zombie firms occurred during the period of main banks (hereinafter MBs). MBs were able to actively choose which firms would receive bailouts at the time. However, commonly held beliefs about
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Why do people oppose foreign acquisitions? Evidence from Japanese individual-level data Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-03-13 Banri Ito, Ayumu Tanaka, Naoto Jinji
This study empirically examines the determinants of individuals’ attitudes about inward foreign direct investment (FDI) using responses from questionnaire surveys that were originally designed. Individuals’ preferences for inward FDI differ between greenfield investments and mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and people are more likely to have a negative attitude toward M&A than greenfield investments
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Commodity prices and global economic activity Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-03-11 Akito Matsumoto, Andrea Pescatori, Xueliang Wang
Commodity prices provide useful information about current and future global economic activity. First, we show that overall commodity prices indeed tend to comove with economic activity. Second, we try to extract the global demand factor(s) using many commodity prices. While commodity prices reflect both demand and supply factors, by relying on a wide variety of commodity prices, supply shocks can be
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Chronological changes of government sectors’ fiscal policies and fiscal sustainability in Japan Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-03-05 Motonori Yoshida
Since the end of the 1990 s, the sluggish growth of Japan’s gross domestic product (GDP) and the mired fiscal state of its public sector have provoked consternation about its public sector’s fiscal sustainability. Therefore, I estimated the fiscal reaction functions (stemming from Bohn, 1998a, 2008) with time-varying parameters for all Japan’s government sectors (for 1976Q2–2020Q1), i.e., the general
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Consumer price measurement under the first wave of the COVID-19 spread in Japan: Scanner data evidence for retailers in Tokyo Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-01-24 Masahiro Higo, Shigenori Shiratsuka
In this paper, we examine the CPI (consumer price index) measurement errors under the first wave of the COVID-19 spread in Japan. To address this question, we construct high-frequency quality-adjusted price indices by employing daily scanner data from retail stores in Tokyo. We demonstrate the importance of using price data with the wide-ranging coverage of products and outlets by making explicit adjustments
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Elderly long-term care policy and sandwich caregivers’ time allocation between child-rearing and market labor Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2023-01-19 Akira Yakita
Using an overlapping generations model, we present analyses of public long-term care provision effects on fertility and time allocation decisions of sandwich caregivers, those caring for young children and old parents simultaneously. If the public long-term care level runs short of the necessary level, then working children must compensate for the difference by spending their time. Reportedly, about
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Expenditure responses to the COVID-19 pandemic Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-12-29 Junichi Kikuchi, Ryoya Nagao, Yoshiyuki Nakazono
We examine how the COVID-19 contagion influences consumer expenditure patterns. We show that the consumption expenditure responses to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic are significantly different between the older and younger generations. We find that older adults spend less than the younger generation by at least 5% during the pandemic. In fact, those aged above 60 significantly decrease their spending
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Impact of international expansion strategy on the performance of Japanese banks Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-12-23 Joseph Jr. Aduba, Kozo Harimaya
The effect of cross-border diversification on bank performance is part of the broader debate on how multinational banking and financial integration affect the global financial economy. Previous studies that examined this relationship present mixed results - namely that cross-border diversification improves bank performance but also increases bank risks that could lead to systemic failure. Even so,
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The Balassa-Samuelson model with job separations Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-12-16 Noel Gaston, Taiyo Yoshimi
We incorporate sectoral job separation rates in a small open economy model to examine the Balassa-Samuelson (B-S) effect. Unequal separation rates give rise to compensating wage differentials. We simulate the model for Japan and replicate a feature of its economy that the nontradeables sector has higher wages and a higher separation rate compared to the tradeables sector. With productivity growth in
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On expenditure/income discrepancies in national accounts in the presence of two price units Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-10-29 Makoto Saito
This paper demonstrates that expenditure/income discrepancies appearing in national accounts are caused partly by the nominal distortion due to the presence of two price units, and partly by the real distortion due to the mismeasurement of expenditure items. In addition, it investigates how such statistical discrepancies reveal potentially important information about various informal, though not necessarily
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Transportation infrastructure and trade Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-10-31 Zheng Han, Hongtao Li
This paper offers a variant of the Ricardian model able to structurally interpret the estimate of country specific variable—transportation infrastructure. Guided by this new theoretical framework, this paper shows that transportation infrastructure enhances international trade more than internal trade. Further quantitative analysis suggests 10% increase in transportation infrastructure induces 3.9%
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Looking from Gross Domestic Income: Alternative view of Japan’s economy Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-10-30 Toshitaka Sekine
This study estimates the Gross Domestic Income (GDI) from taxation data by updating Fujiwara and Ogawa (2016, 2018). The National Account statistics in Japan derives GDI from GDP so that the national accounting identity always holds. However, from the experiences of the U.S. and Australia, where GDI is estimated independently from GDP, the identity does not hold in practice due to differences in data
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FX swaps and forwards in global dollar debt: “Known knowns” and “known unknowns” Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-10-28 Patrick McGuire
Several types of FX derivatives involve the exchange of principal, making them a form of collateralised loan. But unlike other forms of collateralised borrowing, the payment obligations associated with such derivatives are not reported on the balance sheet: they are in a very real sense “missing debt”. This introduces gaps in the compilation of countries’ and sectors’ foreign currency positions, in
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FDI, ownership structure, and productivity Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-09-26 Tadashi Ito, Ayumu Tanaka
The standard firm heterogeneity model of FDI considers the case of whole ownership of foreign affiliates. However, there exist many partially-owned foreign affiliates. This paper builds a model based on Helpman et al. (2004) to allow various ownership structures and posits some testable hypotheses on the relationship between productivity and ownership shares/structures. The empirical part corroborates
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Traveling and eating out during the COVID-19 pandemic: The Go To campaign policies in Japan Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-09-17 Toshihiro Okubo
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic plunged many industries of the economy into contraction, particularly the travel, hotel accommodation, and eating/drinking industries. In Japan, some demand-inducing policies targeting such industries were implemented, known as the Go To Travel and Go To Eat campaigns. Using a unique individual-level survey, we investigate what factors make people respond
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Measuring concentration in the Japanese loan and deposit markets Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-08-20 Iichiro Uesugi, Kazuki Hiraga, Masashi Manabe, Naoyuki Yoshino
This study is the first to exhaustively calculate the degree of concentration in regional banking markets using the outstanding amount of loans and deposits at branches and headquarters of financial institutions in Japan. Calculating the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) for loans and deposits for each prefecture and for each urban employment area for the period 2005–2019, we show differences in the
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Determinants of the number of bidders and win-reserve ratio in open competitive tendering: Relationship-specific investments and incomplete contracts Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-08-08 Yoshinobu Nakanishi
In open competitive tendering in Japan, one-party bid events where only one contractor submits a bid frequently occur. This situation has been criticized as hindering economic efficiency and fairness. This study uses bidding records to statistically analyze the factors that influence the number of bidders and cause one-party bids, which subsequently influence the win-reserve ratio. We found that fewer
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Impact of career education on high school students’ occupational choice: Evidence from a cluster-randomized controlled trial Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-07-25 Ryosuke Moriyasu, Toru Kobayashi
What influence does career-relevant information have on occupational choices? This study analyzes changes in career preferences related to the provision of career-relevant information through a cluster-randomized controlled trial with students at a rural Japanese high school. We examined the potential effects of two types of information, including an information regarding impact of technological innovation
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Initial funding and founders’ human capital: An empirical analysis using multiple surveys for start-up firms Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-06-18 Yuji Honjo, Charee Kwak, Hirofumi Uchida
This study explores the use of initial funding sources using a unique sample of various types of start-up firms in Japan obtained from multiple surveys. We provide evidence on the differences in the use of initial funding sources and their determinants across start-up firms by estimating a multivariate probit model. Our findings indicate that founders’ human capital, entrepreneurial commitment, growth
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How effective was the restaurant restraining order against COVID-19? A nighttime light study in Japan Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-05-05 Kazunobu Hayakawa, Souknilanh Keola, Shujiro Urata
In this study, we examined the effect of the order of shortening business hours of the restaurants, which are considered a major source of spreading the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Specifically, we empirically investigated how this order changed the nighttime light (NTL) in regions with restaurants in the Greater Tokyo area from January to June 2020. Several local governments in Japan had implemented
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The effect of price on the quality of public construction in Japan Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-04-20 Kentaro Hatsumi, Rieko Ishii
We examine whether the price affects the contractor’s choice of quality using the ex-post quality evaluation data of public construction projects conducted by Ise City in Japan. Ise City employs a sealed-bid first-price auction with reserve and minimal prices in the selection of contractors. Upon completion of the project, Ise City evaluates the quality of the work using a 100-point scale score based
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The impact of exchange rate changes on the Japanese chemical industry Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-04-15 Willem Thorbecke, Nimesh Salike, Chen Chen
We investigate how exchange rates affect the Japanese chemical industry. This industry exports sophisticated products to downstream firms. Since more complex products are less substitutable in international trade, we investigate whether they have lower price elasticities. We measure complexity using Hidalgo and Hausmann’s (2009) product complexity index. We find that price elasticities are lower for
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Population aging and labor mobility in Japan Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-04-06 Ryuta Ray Kato
By combining the static and dynamic computable general equilibrium models, this paper explores the dynamic impact of future demographic changes on the Japanese economy with a particular focus on multisector production and overlapping generations. Several numerical results were obtained. First of all, the sectoral real GDPs of the aging-related sectors are expected to continue to increase due to the
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Impact of COVID-19 on trade in services Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-03-11 Mitsuyo Ando, Kazunobu Hayakawa
During past shocks (e.g., the 2008–2009 global financial crisis), the services trade was found to be more resilient than the goods trade; however, the ongoing novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has restricted cross-border mobility, which is disastrous to the services trade because it often requires physical proximity between suppliers and consumers. We empirically examined the impact of COVID-19
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The evolution of Japanese keiretsu networks: A review and text network analysis of their perceptions in economics Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-03-07 Artur F. Tomeczek
The article aims to show how keiretsu networks have functioned, evolved, and influenced the economy of Japan over the decades. The main research method used is an in-depth literature review, while a bibliometric analysis and the path-dependence framework support it in the selection of relevant material. The keiretsu predecessors were the zaibatsu – large family-controlled conglomerates that came into
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Erratum to “Effects of deductions on the tax burden reduction and the redistribution of the income and resident taxes” [Jpn. World Econ. 60 (2021) 101104] Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-03-01 Taro Ohno,Junpei Sakamaki,Daizo Kojima,Tomotsugu Imahori
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Comparison of the productivity of public capital by project type: Central-government, subsidized-local, and unsubsidized-local projects in Japan Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-01-31 Keigo Kameda, Zhenkun Lu, Masaki Fukui
Using a panel of Japanese regional data from 1960 to 2003, we estimated the production effect of public capital formed through three types of government projects: (1) projects directly implemented by the central government (central-government projects), (2) projects that are implemented by local governments but induced through subsidies by the central government (subsidized-local projects), and (3)
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What drives the regional disparities in municipal national health insurance premiums? Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-01-31 Ruka Kurono
There are large disparities in premium level among the Municipal National Health Insurance (NHI) programs in Japan. As municipalities have discretion when setting the NHI premiums, they may determine their premiums observing how large or small the premiums of their neighbors are. This study examined how such reference behavior affects the NHI premium level and to what extent it explains the premium
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Estimating the elasticity of taxable income: Evidence from top Japanese taxpayers Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-01-12 Takeshi Miyazaki, Ryo Ishida
This study aims to estimate the elasticity of taxable income (ETI) with regard to the net-of-tax rate, precisely in terms of potential for the margin arising from the behavioral response. We use panel data from top Japanese taxpayers in Tokyo during 1986–1989 and focus on the tax policy changes caused by the 1987–1989 comprehensive tax reform, which substantially reduced the top marginal tax rates
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Determinants of VAT pass-through under imperfect competition: Evidence from Japan Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-02-01 Kosuke Shiraishi
This study empirically explores value-added tax (VAT) pass-through using unique point-of-sales (POS) data at supermarkets and drugstores in Japan. The VAT increase in 2014 covers almost all goods and services, with the same increase rate of 3%. Conventional wisdom assumes that all goods and services experience a 3% price increase from full-shifting. I show that the price changes in the month the VAT
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Comparison of the price adjustment program and subsidy scheme in Japan: Evaluation of domestic sugar support policy to internalize positive externalities Jpn. World Econ. (IF 1.703) Pub Date : 2022-01-31 Takashi Fujimoto, Masahide Watanabe
Fiscally constrained governments prefer imposing tariffs instead of providing subsidies, despite tariffs distorting markets more than subsidies. Japan’s price adjustment program is designed to support the domestic sugar industry by imposing a tariff on imports and by subsidizing domestic production using tariff revenues. This study compared the program and a subsidy scheme using benefit/cost ratios