Many state public commissions have deregulated their utility markets. However, evidence of welfare or efficiency improvements under deregulation is ambiguous. It is also unclear why different states adopt consumer choice, price caps, sliding-scale plans, or retain rate-of-return regulation. This...

Public spending policy is currently being redefined in most of the advanced economies, dramatically affecting public investment. This paper studies the sensitivity of the provision of public inputs to changes in the technology, taxation and consumer preferences. We consider a simple model in...

This paper analyses Total Factor Productivity (TFP) growth in the EU for the main sectors of private activity by adopting a production frontier approach. This analysis enables us to examine the determinants of EU sector productivity growth in European countries and the channels through which...

The paper attempts to estimate the welfare impact of different policy interventions in the foodgrain markets in Bangladesh using an economic surplus approach. Over the period of analysis, 1980--2003, the loss in consumer surplus exceeded the gain in producer surplus plus the gain in government...

This paper employs an endogenous growth model to study the growth and welfare effects of the golden rule of public finance. Two versions are compared, whereby government deficits are restricted for the use of public investments. It is shown that the growth effect of the golden rule depends on...

This paper examines the effect of various types of institutional reforms in enhancing bilateral trade flows. We examine three types of institutional reforms -- democratic political system, legal, and administrative reforms -- and distinguish an initial effect from a permanent effect on bilateral...