The copper smelting industry has under gone extreme change over the past three decades. These changes have reordered dramatically the demand for inputs and the way in which those inputs have been utilized. The stimulus for change has come from multiple sources, and chief among these stimuli has been the mandate to sharply curtail the atmospheric release of sulfur dioxide. Even though the total emissions were lower than those from steam generation of electricity and from the refinery and petro-chemical industry, the perceived local and regional impact of sulfur dioxide forced extreme changes in the utilization of fundamental inputs of capital, labor, energy and materials.This study attempts to analyze these input use changes by modeling the industry as a translog cost function and by generating a number of associated elasticities. In addition to the four basic inputs, the model includes as control variables output, and other variables that represent pollution abatement and technical change.The challenge of estimating a large model on a limited number of observations has delivered information that is more limited in scope than was originally desired. The proxy for technical change did not produce significant parameters and the pollution abatement proxy is limited in its participation in the results. The range of elasticities computed reveal a picture of an industry characterized by inelasticity, in general, labor and energy being part of the exceptions. The industry is found to be sensitive to output level in its degree of elasticity among inputs.The translog model is found to be an effective tool for industry analysis. The promise of detailed analytical information may be even greater at the firm level where data are more accurate and the number of observations far greater.

大陸自七零年代以來經濟快速發展，各界對大陸的市場前景和投資環境看好，紛紛登陸設廠。為因應經濟快速發展，中國政府積極發展國內之基礎建設，從八零年代過後加強重點建設，將能源、交通、教育及科學做為經濟發展的重點策略。而值得我們注意的是，公共資本的貢獻不僅僅是帶來經濟成長，也將會為產業帶來正向的外部效果，因此探討公共資本對產業帶來的效應，是否有助於提升產業生產力，進而降低產業生產成本，是個值得我們關注的議題。 　　本研究以中國製造業廠商做為分析對象，將分別區分成不同產業及不同區域之廠商進行實證研究，針對同性質的廠商進行成本函數之建構，用以估計廠商之公共資本成本彈性，進而闡釋究竟哪些公共資本對製造業廠商有正向的外部效應，並更進一步探討公部門及私部門投入要素間的關係。 　　本研究利用1998年至2006年工業企業數據調查資料庫之跨時橫斷面資料進行迴歸檢定分析，其結果發現基礎建設及教育資本會帶來正向的外部效益，可以有效降低製造業之成本，且教育資本比基礎建設對廠商的邊際效益大；而研發資本則無法提升廠商的生產效率。本文推論，中國研發資本投入遠遠低於基礎建設及教育資本，故研發資本並無法顯著提升製造業之生產力。因此中國於公共事業發展上，應以基礎建設及教育為發展要點，且教育方面的公共投資是最具效率的政策工具，將更有益於製造業廠商的生產。

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The purpose of the thesis is to introduce novel measure of real marginal cost in the New Keynesian Phillips Curve (NKPC) and compares its performance with conventional mea- sures such as output gap and labour share of income. Real marginal cost is derived from a flexible function whereas labour share is based on restrictive assumption of Cobb-Douglas technology. Dynamic correlations and results of NKPC indicate that real marginal cost is better than ad hoc measure of output gap and labour share. Given the heterogeneity in price setting behaviour across sectors, cost functions and NKPC are estimated for the agriculture, manufacturing and other sectors of Pakistan's economy. Real marginal cost is derived from static and dynamic cost functions. In the presence of adjustment costs, dynamic cost functions that are consistent and integrated with their static systems are required. Such dynamic translog cost functions are estimated after testing the theoretical properties and existence of long term relationships in the static functions. Cost attributes, marginal cost, total factor productivity, technological progress, demand and substitution elasticities are derived from static and dynamic functions. Three specifications of forward looking and hybrid form of the Phillips curves are estimated with real marginal cost, output gap and labour share. Results indicate that hybrid specifications perform better than the forward looking models in terms of goodness of fit and statistical significance. Further, comparison of Phillips curves estimated with real marginal cost, output gap and labour share indicate that real marginal cost performs better in explaining inflation dynamics in Pakistan. The results indicate that forward looking behaviour dominates and high level of nominal rigidities persists in Pakistan. Finally, hybrid form of the NKPC is estimated for a panel of sixteen Asian economies. With the consideration of heterogeneity and aggregation bias, the mean group, random coefficient and weighted average coefficients are derived from individual estimates. The unobserved time variant common factors cause cross correlation in the errors that may lead towards inconsistent estimates. Therefore, cross section averages of the explanatory and the dependent variables are augmented in hybrid specification to capture the effect of latent variables. Findings suggest that the discount factor is almost 0.94, the nominal rigidities are 33% and the weights of expected and past inflation are 66% and 33% respectively. Nominal rigidities of the Asian economies are lower than the estimates for US and Euro areas. The weights of expected and past inflation of the Asian economies are consistent with the US but lower than the estimates from the Euro areas.

本文將設定一 Translog 多產品成本函數模型，以估計台灣旅行業之規模 經濟 (Economies of Scale) 及多樣化經濟 (Economies of Scope)程度 。在 Translog 多產品成本函數模型中，係以廠商所經營之四項業務，包 括來華觀光、出國旅遊、國民旅遊及代辦業務等，當作四種不同的產品， 而要素投入則為勞動與資本租賃。實證結果顯示，台灣旅行業普遍存在規 模經濟的現象。此結果可能導致：第一，所謂``靠行''的形成；第二，規 模較小的廠商可能根據本身的競爭優勢與經營特色而採取市場區隔化策略 ，以服務某特定之顧客群；第三，現有旅行業廠商之間的合併，或是來自 產業外的廠商藉購併進入旅行業市場，以從事多角化經營。另外，就產品 生產效率而言，我們以多樣化經濟存在與否認為，來華觀光與出國觀光之 間、來華觀光與國民旅遊之間，以及出國觀光與國民旅遊之間，因其業務 關聯性不大，而無法發揮資源共用共享的效果，因此不適合聯合生產。而 出國觀光與代辦業務之間，因業務關聯性大，因此若能聯合生產，則必然 能夠產生綜效。至於來華觀光與代辦業務之間，以及國民旅遊與代辦業務 之間，雖無明顯之證據顯示其具有聯合生產之優勢，但若存在閒置產能， 或是因某種業務之專業性不高，致使人力資源之轉換成本不大時，亦不排 除聯合生產之可能。

Submitted by Marilene Donadel (marilene.donadel@unioeste.br) on 2018-10-23T17:20:41Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Wagner_Franca_2018.pdf: 1672761 bytes, checksum: cbabb751327c3b80926b9fbde714a9e3 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-10-23T17:20:41Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Wagner_Franca_2018.pdf: 1672761 bytes, checksum: cbabb751327c3b80926b9fbde714a9e3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-05-14 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / The global primary energy mix is mostly composed by nonrenewable resources and the use of which uses contributes to increase the greenhouse gas emissions. The consumption of oil and coal, responsible for attending 60% of the total energy demand between 1970 and 2015, is more likely to enhance the air pollution than the consumption of natural gas. Besides, some authors announce the impossibility of sustaining the demand of oil with conventional type only at around 2050, because of technical and economic constraints over the reserves. Technology has been playing a roll giving more flexibility to the interfuel substitution among fossil fuels, in many applications. That gives the opportunity to increase the share of natural gas in the primary mix, while reducing the consumptions of the other two. Moreover, the reserves of natural gas are larger in comparison with the ones of oil, allowing it to alleviate the pressure over the latter. From those perspectives, increasing the use of natural gas would contribute to reduce the negative environment externality and the extension of a possible shock to be unleashed in the energy supply. The objective of this dissertation is to seek for a substitutability between natural gas and the others fossil fuels in the primary energy demand, using the Morishima Elasticity of Substitution, between 1970 and 2015. The model started with a Translog cost function to obtain the input demand equations of each fuel and their cost share functions, applying Shephard’s lemma. The parameters of the econometric regression were estimated by the Seemingly Unrelated Regressions method, as means to measure the price elasticity, the Allen Elasticity of Substitution and the Morishima Elasticity of Substitution. The model was applied to the United States due to their significance in the global context of energy. The results showed that a single conclusion for the period as a whole is statistically insignificant. Based on own-price elasticities, there were clearly three structural brakes, statistically significant, which divided the time series in four intervals. In the interval 1970-1981, the natural gas had a complementary relation with oil and both were substitutes for coal. In the intervals 1982-1995 and 1996-2008, there was substitutability among natural gas and oil, although limited. In the most recent interval, all of the fuels were complements to each other. Putting together the elasticities of substitution and the price elasticities analysis, we conclude that factors exogenous to the free market relations, such as government interventions, were determinants to demand decisions. The lack of a continuous and consistent relation of substitution between natural gas and the other two fossil fuels, warns that the concerns presented in this work may have being neglected and a transition from a polluted and finite mix to another cleaner and renewable, bridged by natural gas, is not occurring in the world’s largest economy. / A matriz mundial de energia primária é composta predominantemente por recursos não renováveis e cujo consumo contribui para a intensificação do efeito estufa. O consumo do petróleo e do carvão, combustíveis que supriram mais de 60% da demanda total de energia entre 1970 e 2015, é mais intensivo na geração de poluentes do que o consumo do gás natural. Além disso, alguns autores datam para próximo de 2050 a impossibilidade de sustentar a demanda de petróleo, pelo esgotamento técnico e econômico das reservas do tipo convencional. A tecnologia vem dando flexibilidade para que haja a substituição dentre os combustíveis fósseis, em várias aplicações. Isso gera a oportunidade de aumentar o consumo do menos poluidor, o gás natural, em substituição aos outros dois. O gás natural também possui reservas relativamente maiores do que as do petróleo, o que permite a ele aliviar parte da pressão colocada sobre este último. Por estas perspectivas, aumentar a participação do gás natural contribui para a mitigação da externalidade ambiental e reduz a magnitude de uma possível crise causada por um choque de oferta. O objetivo geral desta dissertação é responder se há uma relação de substituição entre o gás natural e os outros combustíveis fósseis na demanda de energia primária, pela Elasticidade de Substituição de Morishima, no período entre 1970 e 2015. O modelo partiu de uma função de custos do tipo Translog para chegar às equações de demanda condicionada de cada combustível e às equações de participação de custo, aplicando o lema de Shepard. Os parâmetros da regressão econométrica foram estimados pelo método Seemingly Unrelated Regressions e usados para os cálculos das elasticidades da demanda aos preços, de substituição de Allen e de substituição de Morishima. O modelo foi aplicado aos Estados Unidos, dada a significância deste país no contexto mundial de energia. Os resultados mostraram que uma única conclusão para todo o período é estatisticamente insignificante. Com base nas elasticidades aos próprios preços, foi possível identificar três quebras estruturais, estatisticamente significativas, dividindo o período em quatro intervalos. No intervalo 1970-1981, o gás natural se mostrou complementar ao petróleo e, estes dois, substitutos ao carvão. Nos intervalos 1982-1995 e 1996-2008 foi identificada uma relação de substituibilidade entre o gás natural e o petróleo, apesar de limitada. No mais recente, todos os combustíveis tiveram relações de complementariedade. Aliando estas às interpretações das elasticidades-preço, concluiu-se que fatores externos ao mercado, como interferências de governo, foram mais determinantes para as decisões de demanda. Não ter sido possível encontrar uma relação de substituição entre o gás natural e os outros dois fósseis, de forma contínua e consistente, deixa o alerta de que as preocupações levantadas podem estar sendo negligenciadas e que a transição de uma matriz predominantemente suja e finita para outra mais limpa e renovável, mediada pelo gás natural, não está em curso na maior economia do mundo.

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This doctoral thesis consists of three essays. In the first essay I investigate the presence of productivity convergence in eight regional pulp and paper industries of U.S. and Canada over the period of 1971-2005. Expectation of productivity convergence in the pulp and paper industries of Canadian provinces and of the states of its southern neighbour is high since they are trading partners with fairly high level of exchanges in both pulp and paper products. Moreover, they share a common production technology that changed very little over the last century. I supplement the North-American regional data with national data for two Nordic countries, Finland and Sweden, which provides a scope to compare the productivity performances of four leading players in global pulp and paper industry. I find evidence in favour of the catch-up hypothesis among the regional pulp and paper industries of U.S. and Canada in my sample. The growth performance is at the advantage of Canadian provinces relative to their U.S. counterparts. However, it is not good enough to surpass the growth rates of this industry in the two Nordic countries. It is well-known that econometric productivity estimation using flexible functional forms often encounter violations of curvature conditions. However, the productivity literature does not provide any guidance on the selection of appropriate functional forms once they satisfy the theoretical regularity conditions. The second chapter of my thesis provides an empirical evidence that imposing local curvature conditions on the flexible functional forms affect total factor productivity (TFP) estimates in addition to the elasticity estimates. Moreover, I use this as a criterion for evaluating the performances of three widely used locally flexible cost functional forms - the translog (TL), the Generalized Leontief (GL), and the Normalized Quadratic (NQ) - in providing TFP estimates. Results suggest that the NQ model performs better than the other two functional forms in providing TFP estimates. The third essay capitalizes on newly available high frequency energy consumption data from commercial buildings in the District of Columbia (DC) to provide novel insights on the realized energy use impacts of energy efficiency standards in commercial buildings. Combining these data with hourly weather data and information on tenancy contract structure I evaluate the impacts of energy standards, contractual structure of utility bill payments, and energy star labeling on account level electricity consumption. Using this unique panel dataset, the analysis takes advantage of detailed building-level characteristics and the heterogeneity in the building age distribution, resulting in buildings constructed before and after mandatory energy standards came into effect. Estimation results suggest that in commercial buildings constructed under a code, electricity consumption is lower by about 0.48 kWh per cooling degree hour. When tenants pay for their own utilities, consumption is lower by 0.82 kWh per cooling degree hour. The Energy Star effect is a 0.31 kWh reduction per cooling degree hour. Finally, peak savings for all three variables of interest occur at 2pm in the summer months, whereas peak summer marginal prices at DC's local electric utility occur at 5pm.