IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/mgtdec/v45y2024i1p193-209.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Slowdown in total factor productivity of French private companies: Between microeconomic heterogeneity and inappropriate government policies

Author

Listed:
  • Afef Bouattour
  • Maha Kalai
  • Kamel Helali

Abstract

This article aims to find an explanation for the slowdown in the total factor productivity (TFP) of private firms on the one hand, and on the other hand, to show the need for state intervention through government policies whose impacts on TFP were verified in the literature. In this paper, we examined the relationship between different government policies and TFP growth for 78 French firms covering the period 2005 to 2019. Firstly, this study showed that TFP varies considerably over time, suggesting that microeconomic factors may have an important impact on firms' TFP. Secondly, some of the government policies were favorable to TFP growth while others were rather hindering. Indeed, the positive impact of both public infrastructure spending and public subsidies to French firms shows that an expansionary fiscal policy would allow a recovery in TFP. On the other hand, taxes on imported products, the exchange rate and cost‐competitiveness ratio, with a negative impact, show that the competitiveness policies adopted are unfavorable to the resumption of TFP growth. Thirdly, it should be noted that operating, investment and R&D subsidies were channels for the effectiveness of French government policies. Finally, by taking into account a set of macroeconomic indicators, the study confirmed the positive impact of a favorable macroeconomic environment on the recovery of TFP.

Suggested Citation

  • Afef Bouattour & Maha Kalai & Kamel Helali, 2024. "Slowdown in total factor productivity of French private companies: Between microeconomic heterogeneity and inappropriate government policies," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 45(1), pages 193-209, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:mgtdec:v:45:y:2024:i:1:p:193-209
    DOI: 10.1002/mde.3996
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/mde.3996
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/mde.3996?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Robert M. Solow, 1979. "Alternative Approaches to Macroeconomic Theory: A Partial View, W.A. Mackintosh Lecture 1979," Working Paper 335, Economics Department, Queen's University.
    2. Narayan, Paresh Kumar & Smyth, Russell, 2008. "Energy consumption and real GDP in G7 countries: New evidence from panel cointegration with structural breaks," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(5), pages 2331-2341, September.
    3. Fernandes, Ana M., 2007. "Trade policy, trade volumes and plant-level productivity in Colombian manufacturing industries," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 71(1), pages 52-71, March.
    4. Chad Syverson, 2011. "What Determines Productivity?," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 49(2), pages 326-365, June.
    5. Paresh Kumar Narayan & Russell Smyth, 2006. "Female labour force participation, fertility and infant mortality in Australia: some empirical evidence from Granger causality tests," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(5), pages 563-572.
    6. Narayan, Paresh Kumar & Nielsen, Ingrid & Smyth, Russell, 2008. "Panel data, cointegration, causality and Wagner's law: Empirical evidence from Chinese provinces," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 19(2), pages 297-307, June.
    7. Alessandro Bellocchi & Edgar J. Sanchez Carrera & Giuseppe Travaglini, 2021. "What drives TFP long-run dynamics in five large European economies?," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 38(2), pages 569-595, July.
    8. Feldstein, Martin, 2015. "Ending the euro crisis," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 37(3), pages 423-427.
    9. Robert J. Gordon, 2015. "Secular Stagnation: A Supply-Side View," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 105(5), pages 54-59, May.
    10. Morley, Bruce, 2006. "Causality between economic growth and immigration: An ARDL bounds testing approach," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 90(1), pages 72-76, January.
    11. Charnes, A. & Cooper, W. W. & Rhodes, E., 1978. "Measuring the efficiency of decision making units," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 2(6), pages 429-444, November.
    12. Martin Neil Baily & James Manyika & Shalabh Gupta, 2013. "U.S. Productivity Growth: An Optimistic Perspective," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 25, pages 3-12, Spring.
    13. Dan Andrews & Chiara Criscuolo & Peter N. Gal, 2015. "Frontier Firms, Technology Diffusion and Public Policy: Micro Evidence from OECD Countries," OECD Productivity Working Papers 2, OECD Publishing.
    14. Odhiambo, Nicholas M., 2009. "Energy consumption and economic growth nexus in Tanzania: An ARDL bounds testing approach," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(2), pages 617-622, February.
    15. Fare, Rolf & Shawna Grosskopf & Mary Norris & Zhongyang Zhang, 1994. "Productivity Growth, Technical Progress, and Efficiency Change in Industrialized Countries," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 84(1), pages 66-83, March.
    16. JaeBin Ahn & Era Dabla‐Norris & Romain Duval & Bingjie Hu & Lamin Njie, 2019. "Reassessing the productivity gains from trade liberalization," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(1), pages 130-154, February.
    17. Joel Mokyr, 2014. "A Flourishing Economist: A Review Essay on Edmund Phelps's Mass Flourishing: How Grassroots Innovation Created Jobs, Challenge, and Change," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 52(1), pages 189-196, March.
    18. repec:aei:rpaper:650501 is not listed on IDEAS
    19. Michel Gervais & Gervais Thenet, 2004. "Comment évaluer la productivité dans les activités de service ?," ACCRA, Association francophone de comptabilité, vol. 10(1), pages 147-163.
    20. Li, Kaifeng & Guo, Zhaoxuan & Chen, Qi, 2021. "The effect of economic policy uncertainty on enterprise total factor productivity based on financial mismatch: Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    21. Muhammad Arif Khan & Xuezhi Qin & Khalil Jebran, 2020. "Uncertainty and leverage nexus: does trade credit matter?," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 10(3), pages 355-389, September.
    22. Ben Tomlin & Loretta Fung, 2015. "Exchange Rate Movements and the Distribution of Productivity," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 23(4), pages 782-809, September.
    23. Bart van Ark & Mary O'Mahoney & Marcel P. Timmer, 2008. "The Productivity Gap between Europe and the United States: Trends and Causes," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 22(1), pages 25-44, Winter.
    24. Robert Wieser, 2005. "Research And Development Productivity And Spillovers: Empirical Evidence At The Firm Level," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 19(4), pages 587-621, September.
    25. Robert M. Solow, 1979. "Alternative Approaches to Macroeconomic Theory: A Partial View," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 12(3), pages 339-354, August.
    26. Patrice Ollivaud & Yvan Guillemette & David Turner, 2018. "Investment as a transmission mechanism from weak demand to weak supply and the post-crisis productivity slowdown," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1466, OECD Publishing.
    27. Chun Jiang & Fan Wu & Huan Yan, 2022. "Exchange Rate Appreciations and the Distribution of Productivity: Is Importing Inputs Sustainable for Emerging Countries?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-18, November.
    28. Hummera Saleem & Malik Shahzad & Muhammad Bilal Khan & Bashir Ahmad Khilji, 2019. "Innovation, total factor productivity and economic growth in Pakistan: a policy perspective," Journal of Economic Structures, Springer;Pan-Pacific Association of Input-Output Studies (PAPAIOS), vol. 8(1), pages 1-18, December.
    29. Florin Bilbiie & Tommaso Monacelli & Roberto Perotti, 2021. "Fiscal Policy in Europe: Controversies over Rules, Mutual Insurance, and Centralization," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 35(2), pages 77-100, Spring.
    30. Khanna, Rupika & Sharma, Chandan, 2021. "Do technological investments promote manufacturing productivity? A firm-level analysis for India," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    31. David M. Byrne & Stephen D. Oliner & Daniel E. Sichel, 2018. "How Fast are Semiconductor Prices Falling?," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 64(3), pages 679-702, September.
    32. Alberto Bagnai & Christian Alexander Mongeau Ospina, 2018. "Monetary integration vs. real disintegration: single currency and productivity divergence in the euro area," Journal of Economic Policy Reform, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 21(4), pages 353-367, October.
    33. Maha Kalai & Kamel Helali, 2016. "Technical Change and Total Factor Productivity Growth in the Tunisian Manufacturing Industry: A Malmquist Index Approach," African Development Review, African Development Bank, vol. 28(3), pages 344-356, September.
    34. Alberto Bagnai & Christian Alexander Mongeau Ospina, 2018. "Monetary integration vs. real disintegration: single currency and productivity divergence in the euro area," Journal of Economic Policy Reform, Taylor and Francis Journals, vol. 21(4), pages 353-367, October.
    35. David F. Hendry & M. Hashem Pesaran, 2001. "A special issue in memory of John Denis Sargan: studies in empirical macroeconometrics," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 16(3), pages 197-202.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Alessandro Bellocchi & Edgar J. Sanchez Carrera & Giuseppe Travaglini, 2021. "What drives TFP long-run dynamics in five large European economies?," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 38(2), pages 569-595, July.
    2. Julián Ramajo & Miguel A. Márquez & Geoffrey J. D. Hewings, 2024. "Addressing spatial dependence when estimating technical efficiency: A spatialized data envelopment analysis of regional productive performance in the European Union," Growth and Change, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(1), March.
    3. Rath, Badri Narayan & Akram, Vaseem & Bal, Debi Prasad & Mahalik, Mantu Kumar, 2019. "Do fossil fuel and renewable energy consumption affect total factor productivity growth? Evidence from cross-country data with policy insights," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 186-199.
    4. Nicholas M. Odhiambo, 2010. "Financial deepening and poverty reduction in Zambia: an empirical investigation," International Journal of Social Economics, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 37(1), pages 41-53, January.
    5. Nicholas Odhiambo, 2015. "Government Expenditure and Economic Growth in South Africa: an Empirical Investigation," Atlantic Economic Journal, Springer;International Atlantic Economic Society, vol. 43(3), pages 393-406, September.
    6. Odhiambo, Nicholas M., 2010. "Energy consumption, prices and economic growth in three SSA countries: A comparative study," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(5), pages 2463-2469, May.
    7. Dolores Añón Higón & Juan A. Máñez & María E. Rochina-Barrachina & Amparo Sanchis & Juan A. Sanchis, 2022. "Firms’ distance to the European productivity frontier," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 12(2), pages 197-228, June.
    8. Peter Bauer & Igor Fedotenkov & Aurelien Genty & Issam Hallak & Peter Harasztosi & David Martinez Turegano & David Nguyen & Nadir Preziosi & Ana Rincon-Aznar & Miguel Sanchez Martinez, 2020. "Productivity in Europe: Trends and drivers in a service-based economy," JRC Research Reports JRC119785, Joint Research Centre.
    9. Uddin, Gazi Salah & Alam, Md. Mahmudul & Murad, Wahid, 2019. "An empirical study on income and energy consumption in Bangladesh," OSF Preprints yz7k6_v1, Center for Open Science.
    10. Gilbert Cette & Aurélien Devillard & Vincenzo Spiezia, 2022. "Growth Factors in Developed Countries: A 1960–2019 Growth Accounting Decomposition," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 64(2), pages 159-185, June.
    11. Gilbert Cette & Jimmy Lopez & Giorgio Presidente & Vincenzo Spiezia, 2019. "Measuring ‘indirect’ investments in ICT in OECD countries," Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(4), pages 348-364, May.
    12. Elena Ketteni & Theofanis Mamuneas & Panos Pashardes, 2017. "Factors affecting the productivity of European Economies," Cyprus Economic Policy Review, University of Cyprus, Economics Research Centre, vol. 11(2), pages 3-18, December.
    13. Belloumi, Mounir, 2012. "The relationship between Trade, FDI and Economic growth in Tunisia: An application of autoregressive distributed lag model," Conference papers 332240, Purdue University, Center for Global Trade Analysis, Global Trade Analysis Project.
    14. Gazi Salah Uddin & Phouphet Kyophilavong & Nasim Sydee, 2012. "The Casual Nexus of Banking Sector Development and Poverty Reduction in Bangladesh," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 2(3), pages 304-311.
    15. Alexander Murray, 2017. "What Explains the Post-2004 U.S.Productivity Slowdown?," CSLS Research Reports 2017-05, Centre for the Study of Living Standards.
    16. Agostino, Mariarosaria & Nifo, Annamaria & Trivieri, Francesco & Vecchione, Gaetano, 2016. "Total factor productivity heterogeneity: channelling the impact of institutions," MPRA Paper 72759, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    17. Odhiambo, Nicholas M, 2020. "Energy consumption and economic growth in Botswana: Empirical evidence from disaggregated data analysis," Working Papers 27659, University of South Africa, Department of Economics.
    18. Nicholas M. Odhiambo, 2021. "Energy consumption and economic growth in Botswana: empirical evidence from a disaggregated data," International Review of Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(1), pages 3-24, January.
    19. Dolores An~o´n Higo´n & Juan A. Man~ez & Mari´a E. Rochina-Barrachina & Amparo Sanchis & Juan A. Sanchis-Llopis, 2017. "The determinants of firms’ convergence to the European TFP frontier," Working Papers 1707, Department of Applied Economics II, Universidad de Valencia.
    20. Uddin, Gazi Salah & Alam, Md. Mahmudul & Murad, Wahid, 2019. "An empirical study on income and energy consumption in Bangladesh," OSF Preprints yz7k6, Center for Open Science.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:mgtdec:v:45:y:2024:i:1:p:193-209. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/jhome/7976 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.