Germany's Technological Performance: A Study On Behalf Of The German Federal Ministry Of Education And Research (zew Economic Studies)

The research results presented in this book are part of the continuous reporting on the technological performance of the German economy. The indicators of technological performance show a high efficiency of the German innovation system in the short term. New knowledge is rapidly transferred into patents, innovative activities are growing independently of the business cycle, and German enterprises are well established on international markets. With respect to the medium and longer term, however, the expansion of the R & D-intensive sectors, R & D activities in general and start-ups do not seem to be strong enough, and the service sector lacks prominent features in international comparison. While there are potentials, they are not sufficiently being mobilised. The strength of the German innovation system lies in advanced technologies. But Germany is also the technological leader in some areas. Being a "fast follower" by quickly integrating new technologies in innovative products and processes should prove a successful strategy. Innovation policy should promote solutions in all parts of the economy and society For some time, it has been debated whether a lack of wage flexibility is at the roots of the high and persistent unemployment in West Germany. In the presence of a skill bias in labor demand, which increases the relative de­ mand for more highly skilled labor over time, there only seems to exist the choice between higher wage inequality or higher unemployment rates. This study scrutinizes whether and in what way this line of thought is consis­ tent with empirical findings for West Germany. The analysis ranges from extensive descriptive evidence on wage trends to the estimation of a struc­ tural model of wage bargaining. As the most important database, I use the IAB-Beschiiftigtenstichprobe from 1975 to 1990. This study was accepted as a Habilitation thesis by the Department of Economics and Statistics of the University of Konstanz in October 1998. The only major change relates to appendix B on the block bootstrap procedure now summarizing the main aspects of the method. I am very grateful to my advisor Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Franz for his support, encouragement, and inspiration. From 1993 to 1997, he ran the Center for International Labor Economics at the University of Konstanz in such a way that it provided a fruitful environment for empirical research in labor economics. I am also indebted to Prof. Dr. Winfried Pohlmeier and to Prof. Dr. Gerd Ronning for undertaking the task to evaluate my Habilitation thesis. As the Kyoto conference of the parties on the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change once again underscored, man-made climate change has become one of the major challenges to our generation and many generations to come. Since scientific evidence on climate change can be seen as increasingly reliable, the focus of our attention has to turn more and more to the question of foreseeable damages and to possibilities to prevent and mitigate climate change. In other words, we need to analyse the economic aspects of man­ marle climate change and the policy options to prevent its most severe impacts. This book reports on the findings of an international workshop on these aspects of global climate change. It was organised by the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) in Mannheim, Germany on March 6th and 7th 1997. In the light of the ongoing international policy-making process on climate change, we decided to publish the report after the Kyoto conference from December Ist to 10th, 1997, to include the results of the conference, which emphasise the importance of economic aspects and economic policy options when it comes to addressing the problern of man-made climate change. Thus, this book went to press in February 1998 the moment we received the official version of the Kyoto Protocol, which is reproduced in the annex. Maintaining the innovation capabilities of firms, employees and institutions is a key component for the generation of sustainable growth, employment, and high income in industrial societies. Gaining insights into the German innovation system and the institutional framework is as important to policy making as is data on the endowment of the German economy with factors fostering innovation and their recent development. Germany's Federal Ministry of Education and Research has repeatedly commissioned reports on the competitive strength of the German innovation system since the mid-eighties. The considerable attention that the public and the political, administrative and economic actors have paid to these reports in the past few years proves the strong interest in the assessment of and indicators for the dynamics behind innovation activities. The present study closely follows the pattern of those carried out before. It has been extended, however, to include an extensive discussion on indicators for technological performance and an outline of the key features of the German innovation system.

It is dealt with disparities in employment growth, unemployment, and wages between regional labor markets in Germany. First, endogenous formation and growth of industry locations due to agglomeration economies is established as a basic source of disparity in employment. Then, spatial frictions and local wage inflexibility due to central wage bargaining are detected as causes of unemployment disparities. Throughout the book theoretical analysis is combined with rigorous empirical testing using a large set of regional data at district level. In order to gain and robustify empirical results, recent methods in panel econometrics and spatial data analysis are employed. An overview on the extent of key regional labor market disparities in Germany is given. The book enables to assess our current understanding of the role of locational issues in causing those disparities, and thus to understand the basic justification of regional policy.

Most governments in today's market economies spend significant sums of money on labour market programmes. The declared aims of these programmes are to increase the re-employment chances of the unemployed. This book investigates which active labour market programmes in Poland are value for money and which are not. To this end, modern statistical methods are applied to both macro- and microeconomic data. It is shown that training programmes increase, whereas job subsidies and public works decrease the re-employment opportunities of the unemployed. In general, all active labour market policy effects are larger in absolute size for men than for women. By surveying previous studies in the field and outlining the major statistical approaches that are employed in the evaluation literature, the book can be of help to any student interested in programme evaluation irrespective of the paticular programme or country concerned.

The book provides an integrated analysis of the implications for the energy system from adapting to meet climate change targets and analyses the role of improving energy technologies for the world and the EU markets. The first part of the book sets the stage for the analysis by presenting the European and World economic and energy outlook. The second part examines the policy options available for controlling greenhouse gases in the period to 2010. Over such a relatively short period, the role of technology lies mostly in making possible the more efficient use of energy. Finally, the third part of the volume examines the longer term role of technology in the context of a case study for the power generation sector.

"This book explores empirically for West Germany whether a decline in the relative demand for less skilled workers resulted in increased unemployment. Using up-to-date econometric techniques, a balanced mixture between descriptive evidence and structural estimation is provided, and there are various findings in the book which require a modification of the conventional wisdom about labor market trends in West Germany. Overall, wage dispersion has been increasing, and wage growth has been higher for low-skilled and high-skilled workers compared to the medium skill group. A skill bias in labor demand trends is found and higher wage flexibility could have alleviated the dispersion in unemployment rates across skill groups This text provides an integrated analysis of the implications for the energy system from the need to adapt to meet climate change targets and analyzes the role of improving energy technologies for the world and the EU markets. The first part sets the stage for the analysis by presenting the European and world economic and energy outlook. The second part examines the policy options available for controlling greenhouse gases in the period 2010. The role of technology lies mostly in making possible the more efficient use of energy. The third part examines the longer term role of technology in the context of a case study for the power generation sector

The successful signing of the Kyoto Protocol showed that there is international consensus about the problem of man-made climate change and that substantial greenhouse gas emission targets will soon be established. Based on the current scientific knowledge about climate change this workshop report analyses the most important economic aspects of man-made climate change and the way effective and efficient policies can be designed to achieve the necessary reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, the official versions of the Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol are included as a reference for the reader.

"Fair and efficient pricing has become increasingly important in international environmental and transport policy. Thus the valuation and internalization of social costs is now a crucial element within strategies towards sustainable mobility. The book provides methods and results from major European and American studies evaluating both social costs of transport and first experiences with their internalization in different contexts: infrastructure planning, urban road pricing and highway tolling. Additionally, complementary non-monetary instruments for a transition towards sustainable mobility are presented and discussed." --Book Jacket

This book investigates whether a lack of wage flexibility is at the root of the unemployment problem in West Germany. In the presence of a skill bias in labor demand, only the choice between higher wage inequality or higher unemployment rates seems to exist. Whether and in what way this line of thought is consistent with the experience of West Germany is scrutinized empirically. The analysis ranges from extensive descriptive evidence on labor market trends to the estimation of a structural model of wage bargaining.

Climate technology becomes more and more relevant in international environmental policy negotiations. At the Kyoto conference binding emission reduction targets have been established for several regions of the world. The major challenge is how to realize these reduction goals with minimum costs without generating new distributional and social difficulties. The book analyses the macroeconomic structural and distributional impacts of greenhouse gas mitigation strategies for the EU and the member states. Front Matter....Pages I-IX Introduction and Overview....Pages 1-4 Summary....Pages 5-21 Challenges to and Precepts for Effective Education, Research and Innovation Policies....Pages 23-38 Basic Concepts....Pages 39-54 Industrial Specialization in Germany....Pages 55-74 Innovation in the Service Sector and Competitive Strength....Pages 75-86 Indicators for Germany’s Technological Performance....Pages 87-143 Obsevations Regarding Special Topics....Pages 145-165 Back Matter....Pages 167-191 Examines explanations for regional disparities in employment and unemployment in West Germany. Focuses on three basic issues: interregional employment location, the interregional mobility of labour and regional wage formation. Includes some trends from 1978 to 1994 There is a growing need at the European Union level for concrete decisions concerning the implementation of specific policies that aim at reducing atmospheric emissions, often termed QELROs (Quantified Emission Limitation and Reduction Objectives). Evaluates programmes in Poland in the 1990s to increase the re-employment chances of the unemployed