IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/soecon/v79y2012i2p422-449.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Firm Productivity, Innovation, and Financial Development

Author

Listed:
  • Era Dabla-Norris
  • Erasmus K. Kersting
  • Geneviève Verdier

Abstract

How do firm‐specific actions—in particular, innovation—affect firm productivity? What is the role of the financial sector in facilitating higher productivity? Using a rich firm‐level data set, we find that innovation is crucial for firm performance as it directly and measurably increases productivity. The impact of innovation on productivity is larger in less‐developed countries. Evidence of financial sector development influencing the innovation‐productivity link is weak, but the effect is difficult to identify due to correlation between indicators of a country's financial and nonfinancial development. Furthermore, we find evidence that the innovation effect on productivity is more significant for high‐tech firms than for low‐tech firms.

Suggested Citation

  • Era Dabla-Norris & Erasmus K. Kersting & Geneviève Verdier, 2012. "Firm Productivity, Innovation, and Financial Development," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 79(2), pages 422-449, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:soecon:v:79:y:2012:i:2:p:422-449
    DOI: 10.4284/0038-4038-2011.201
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.4284/0038-4038-2011.201
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.4284/0038-4038-2011.201?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
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Joshua D. Angrist & Alan B. Krueger, 2001. "Instrumental Variables and the Search for Identification: From Supply and Demand to Natural Experiments," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 15(4), pages 69-85, Fall.
    2. Dollar, David & Hallward-Driemeier, Mary & Mengistae, Taye, 2006. "Investment climate and international integration," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 34(9), pages 1498-1516, September.
    3. Zvi Griliches & Jacques Mairesse, 1995. "Production Functions: The Search for Identification," NBER Working Papers 5067, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Gatti, Roberta & Love, Inessa, 2006. "Does access to credit improve productivity ? Evidence from Bulgarian firms," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3921, The World Bank.
    5. Yuriy Gorodnichenko & Jan Svejnar & Katherine Terrell, 2010. "Globalization and Innovation in Emerging Markets," American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 2(2), pages 194-226, April.
    6. Philippe Aghion & Robin Burgess & Stephen Redding & Fabrizio Zilibotti, 2005. "Entry Liberalization and Inequality in Industrial Performance," Journal of the European Economic Association, MIT Press, vol. 3(2-3), pages 291-302, 04/05.
    7. Rajan, Raghuram G & Zingales, Luigi, 1998. "Financial Dependence and Growth," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 88(3), pages 559-586, June.
    8. Raymond Fisman & Inessa Love, 2004. "Financial Development and Growth in the Short and Long Run," NBER Working Papers 10236, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Sharma, Siddharth, 2007. "Financial development and innovation in small firms," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4350, The World Bank.
    10. Abiad, Abdul & Oomes, Nienke & Ueda, Kenichi, 2008. "The quality effect: Does financial liberalization improve the allocation of capital?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(2), pages 270-282, October.
    11. Thorsten Beck & Asli Demirguc-Kunt & Luc Laeven & Ross Levine, 2008. "Finance, Firm Size, and Growth," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 40(7), pages 1379-1405, October.
    12. Luigi Guiso & Paola Sapienza & Luigi Zingales, 2009. "Does Local Financial Development Matter?," Springer Books, in: Damiano Bruno Silipo (ed.), The Banks and the Italian Economy, chapter 0, pages 31-66, Springer.
    13. Chamberlain, Gary, 1982. "Multivariate regression models for panel data," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 5-46, January.
    14. Philippe Aghion & Peter Howitt & David Mayer-Foulkes, 2005. "The Effect of Financial Development on Convergence: Theory and Evidence," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 120(1), pages 173-222.
    15. Minjia Chen & Alessandra Guariglia, 2011. "Financial constraints and firm productivity in China: do liquidity and export behavior make a difference?," Discussion Papers 11/09, University of Nottingham, GEP.
    16. Chang-Tai Hsieh & Peter J. Klenow, 2009. "Misallocation and Manufacturing TFP in China and India," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 124(4), pages 1403-1448.
    17. Hartmann, Philipp & Papaioannou, Elias & Lo Duca, Marco & Heider, Florian, 2007. "The role of financial markets and innovation in productivity and growth in Europe," Occasional Paper Series 72, European Central Bank.
    18. Philippe Aghion & Nick Bloom & Richard Blundell & Rachel Griffith & Peter Howitt, 2005. "Competition and Innovation: an Inverted-U Relationship," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 120(2), pages 701-728.
    19. F. Arizala & E. Cavallo & A. Galindo, 2013. "Financial development and TFP growth: cross-country and industry-level evidence," Applied Financial Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(6), pages 433-448, March.
    20. Andrés Erosa & Ana Hidalgo Cabrillana, 2008. "On Finance As A Theory Of Tfp, Cross-Industry Productivity Differences, And Economic Rents," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 49(2), pages 437-473, May.
    21. Robert E. Hall & Charles I. Jones, 1999. "Why do Some Countries Produce So Much More Output Per Worker than Others?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 114(1), pages 83-116.
    22. Alfaro, Laura & Chanda, Areendam & Kalemli-Ozcan, Sebnem & Sayek, Selin, 2004. "FDI and economic growth: the role of local financial markets," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(1), pages 89-112, October.
    23. F. Arizala & E. Cavallo & A. Galindo, 2013. "Financial development and TFP growth: cross-country and industry-level evidence," Applied Financial Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(6), pages 433-448, March.
    24. Samuel Kortum, 2008. "Exploring Innovation with Firm Level Data," Economics Program Working Papers 08-11, The Conference Board, Economics Program.
    25. Prescott, Edward C, 1998. "Needed: A Theory of Total Factor Productivity," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 39(3), pages 525-551, August.
    26. Levine, Ross, 2005. "Finance and Growth: Theory and Evidence," Handbook of Economic Growth, in: Philippe Aghion & Steven Durlauf (ed.), Handbook of Economic Growth, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 12, pages 865-934, Elsevier.
    27. Asli Demeirgüç-Kunt & Ross Levine (ed.), 0. "Finance and Growth," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 17119.
    28. Philipp Hartmann & Florian Heider & Elias Papaioannou & Marco Lo Duca, 2007. "The role of financial markets and innovation in productivity and growth in Europe," Occasional Paper Series 72, European Central Bank.
    29. Kennedy, Peter E, 1981. "Estimation with Correctly Interpreted Dummy Variables in Semilogarithmic Equations [The Interpretation of Dummy Variables in Semilogarithmic Equations]," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 71(4), pages 801-801, September.
    30. Thorsten Beck & Asli Demirgüç‐Kunt & Vojislav Maksimovic, 2005. "Financial and Legal Constraints to Growth: Does Firm Size Matter?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 60(1), pages 137-177, February.
    31. Escribano, Alvaro & Guasch, J. Luis, 2005. "Assessing the impact of the investment climate on productivity using firm-level data : methodology and the cases of Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3621, The World Bank.
    32. Daron Acemoglu & Simon Johnson, 2005. "Unbundling Institutions," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 113(5), pages 949-995, October.
    33. Beck, Thorsten & Levine, Ross & Loayza, Norman, 2000. "Finance and the sources of growth," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1-2), pages 261-300.
    34. Roberta Gatti & Inessa Love, 2008. "Does access to credit improve productivity? Evidence from Bulgaria1," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 16(3), pages 445-465, July.
    35. repec:fth:prinin:455 is not listed on IDEAS
    36. Fisman, Raymond & Svensson, Jakob, 2007. "Are corruption and taxation really harmful to growth? Firm level evidence," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(1), pages 63-75, May.
    37. Luisa Blanco, 2009. "The Finance–Growth Link in Latin America," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 76(1), pages 224-248, July.
    38. Joshua Angrist & Alan Krueger, 2001. "Instrumental Variables and the Search for Identification: From Supply and Demand to Natural Experiments," Working Papers 834, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Industrial Relations Section..
    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. Levine, Oliver & Warusawitharana, Missaka, 2021. "Finance and productivity growth: Firm-level evidence," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 91-107.
    2. James B. Ang & Jakob B. Madsen, 2012. "Risk capital, private credit, and innovative production," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 45(4), pages 1608-1639, November.
    3. Christiansen, Lone & Schindler, Martin & Tressel, Thierry, 2013. "Growth and structural reforms: A new assessment," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(2), pages 347-356.
    4. Tidiane Kinda & Patrick Plane & Marie‐Ange Véganzonès‐Varoudakis, 2011. "Firm Productivity And Investment Climate In Developing Countries: How Does Middle East And North Africa Manufacturing Perform?," The Developing Economies, Institute of Developing Economies, vol. 49(4), pages 429-462, December.
    5. F. Arizala & E. Cavallo & A. Galindo, 2013. "Financial development and TFP growth: cross-country and industry-level evidence," Applied Financial Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(6), pages 433-448, March.
    6. Papaioannou, Elias, 2007. "Finance and growth: a macroeconomic assessment of the evidence from a European angle," Working Paper Series 787, European Central Bank.
    7. Bah, El-hadj & Fang, Lei, 2015. "Impact of the business environment on output and productivity in Africa," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 159-171.
    8. Ketteni, Elena & Kottaridi, Constantina, 2019. "Credit market deregulation and economic growth: Further insights using a marginal integration approach," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    9. Philip R. Lane IIIS, Trinity College Dublin and CEPR, 2009. "Innovation and Financial Globalisation," The Institute for International Integration Studies Discussion Paper Series iiisdp299, IIIS.
    10. Thorsten Beck & Asli Demirguc-Kunt & Luc Laeven & Ross Levine, 2008. "Finance, Firm Size, and Growth," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 40(7), pages 1379-1405, October.
    11. Philippe Aghion & Peter Howitt & David Mayer-Foulkes, 2005. "The Effect of Financial Development on Convergence: Theory and Evidence," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 120(1), pages 173-222.
    12. Marrazzo, Marco & Terzi, Alessio, 2017. "Structural reform waves and economic growth," Working Paper Series 2111, European Central Bank.
    13. Chen, Minjia & Guariglia, Alessandra, 2013. "Internal financial constraints and firm productivity in China: Do liquidity and export behavior make a difference?," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(4), pages 1123-1140.
    14. Ahlin, Christian & Pang, Jiaren, 2008. "Are financial development and corruption control substitutes in promoting growth?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(2), pages 414-433, June.
    15. El-Hadj Bah & Lei Fang, 2015. "Working Paper - 219 - Impact of the business Environment on Output and Productivity in Africa," Working Paper Series 2159, African Development Bank.
    16. Angeloni, Ignazio & Kasinger, Johannes & Chantawit Tantasith, 2021. "The geography of banks in the United States (1990-2020)," SAFE Working Paper Series 321, Leibniz Institute for Financial Research SAFE.
    17. Goldman, Jim & Peress, Joel, 2023. "Firm R&D and financial analysis: How do they interact?," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 53(C).
    18. Ahamed, M. Mostak & Mallick, Sushanta K., 2019. "Is financial inclusion good for bank stability? International evidence," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 157(C), pages 403-427.
    19. Zhang, Jin & Wang, Lanfang & Wang, Susheng, 2012. "Financial development and economic growth: Recent evidence from China," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(3), pages 393-412.
    20. Popov, Alexander, 2017. "Evidence on finance and economic growth," Working Paper Series 2115, European Central Bank.

    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:soecon:v:79:y:2012:i:2:p:422-449. 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: https://doi.org/10.1002/(ISSN)2325-8012 .

    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.