Search

Price policies of the multiproduct plant The economie literature does not give the multiproduction problem all the importance it requires. Although most firms are in fact multiproductive, the academie analysis still proceeds in this case with one of those two ways : either it settles the problem by inbedding it in the mysteries of the " black box "', either it simplifies it abusively ai the expense of a lot of unrealistic assumptions. This paper deals with the price polie y of a multiproduct plant. It shows the specificity of the multiproduct situation, and more specifically that the optimal pricing policy of a two-products plant differs from that of two independant firms, each producing one of these products. Moreover, the usual managerial practices of the multiproduct plant are clearly formalized., Profit rates and structural variables in French manufacturing industries This paper applies the limit price mode, and the standard theory of industriel organization to the French industrial sector. Multiple regression analysis is used to assess the influence of concentration, economics of scale, absolute capital cost requirements, product differentiation on profit rates of industries and firms. The results suggest that further concentrating industries, a policy favored by both business leaders and the administration, may lead to misallocation of resources and that a strong antitrust legislation is required in France., du Montcel Henri Tézenas, Soulié Daniel. La politique des prix de l'établissement multiproducteur. In: Revue économique, volume 25, n°6, 1974. pp. 905-923.

Financial markets and bank risk assessment do rating agencies contribute to increase market discipline? This paper examines the role played by rating agencies in increasing market discipline for banks and other financial intermediaries. Using a standard event study methodology applied on a sample of European banks we first analyse the impact of rating changes on bank stock prices. Tests for the presence of abnormal returns do not always confirm that rating agencies convey unexpected information to the market. The estimation of a Logit model on individual bank data shows however that the market does react in the expected direction to increase discipline in the case of institutions for which modern intermediation theory outlines the sharpest asymmetric information problems., L'objet de cet article est d'apporter quelques éléments de réponse empiriques sur le rôle joué par les agences de notation dans l'exercice d'une discipline de marché accrue des banques et autres intermédiaires financiers. L'approche de l'économétrie événementielle est adoptée pour analyser l'impact de la notation sur les cours boursiers d'un échantillon de banques européennes. Au total, il paraît difficile de dégager des résultats concluants qui tendraient à confirmer la fonction de transmission de l'information des agences de notation. Cependant, l'estimation de modèles Logit montre que c'est malgré tout pour les catégories d'institutions bancaires les plus marquées, en théorie, par l'asymétrie d'information que le marché réagit le plus fortement et ce dans un sens souhaitable pour discipliner les banques., Goyeau Daniel,Sauviat Alain,Tarazi Amine. Marché financier et évaluation du risque bancaire. Les agences de notation contribuent-elles à améliorer la discipline de marché ?. In: Revue économique, volume 52, n°2, 2001. pp. 265-283.

Productivity gaps and « cost illness ». Contributions and limits of William J. Baumol's unbalanced growth model This paper exposes and analyses Baumol's unbalanced growth model, develo­ped in 1967. This model, which was revisited and empirically tested in 1985 by Baumol, Blackman and Wolff, tackles a subject that is still of great interest : productivity in the service sector. It emphasises the consequences on employment and growth of a productivity gap between the 'progressive' and 'non-progressive' sectors of the economy. Since the model is mainly concerned by the supply side, it faces some theoretical limits. The discussion of the propositions and the assumptions allows us to value the model's significance and to conclude that an analysis must incorporate both supply and demand aspects in order to really explain the mechanisms that determine production and employment in the different economic sectors., Harvey Mara C. Ecarts de productivité et "maladie des coûts". Apports et limites du modèle de croissance déséquilibrée de William J. Baumol. In: Revue économique, volume 49, n°2, 1998. pp. 437-467.

SUMMARY This paper has been discussed at the Hindsgavl International Associa tion for Research in Income and Wealth conference September 1955. The postwar national income rates of growth in Poland Czechoslovaquia ungaria Rumania and Bulgaria are generally much higher than those of Western countries The upward bias of the indices employed explains only part of this fact The main real factors of growth are the increase of man power and working time the increase of labour productivity due essentially to very high rate of investment the shift of man-power from agriculture to industry After an attempt to measure the relative contribution of these factors to economic growth the author comes to the conclusion that no one of them can be developed on steady geometrical rate The economic growth of the countries concerned was fostered at the beginning by the existence of idle resources But it will depend more and more on the normal deve lopment of all the component factors The resulting rate of growth will gradually decrease to the level observed in more advanced countries The planning system can at best help to maintain an approximately linear but not an exponential pattern of development, Marczewski Jean. Etude statistique et théorique de la croissance économique des pays d'Europe orientale (1945-1955). In: Revue économique, volume 7, n°2, 1956. pp. 169-221.