Despite the popularity of price cap regulation in practice, the economic literature provides relatively little guidance on how to determine the X factor, which is the rate at which inflation -adjusted output prices must fall under price cap plans. We review the standard principles that inform...

In this article, Jeffrey I. Bernstein of Carleton University, Richard G. Harris from Simon Fraser University, and Andrew Sharpe from the Centre for the Study of Living Standards provide a comprehensive analysis of the widening of the Canada-US manufacturing productivity gap. Since 1994, labour...

This paper develops a model incorporating costly disinvestment and estimates the associated commitment premium required to invest in telecommunications. Results indicate that the irreversibility premium raises the opportunity cost of capital by 70 percent. This implies an average annual hurdle...

This paper presents estimates of the effects of intra- and interindustry R&D investment spillo vers on the costs and structure of production. The social rates of re turn to R&D investment and their deviation from the private rate are also estimated. Generally a firm's own R&D capital is a...

This paper develops a model incorporating costly disinvestment and estimates the associated commitment premium required to invest in telecommunications. Results indicate that the irreversibility premium raises the opportunity cost of capital by 70 percent. This implies an average annual hurdle...