This course will cover two major empirical topics which play a central role in studying the productivity and market power of firms: the estimation of production functions, and the estimation of price-cost markups. There have been important developments in both areas in recent years, which will be outlined and discussed in the course. Our focus will be on the use of micro datasets which are widely available, either from company accounts for individual firms, or from census of production surveys for individual business establishments.
TOPICS COVERED
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Who is the Course for?
The target audience for this course is Graduate Students in Economics who are interested in doing empirical work in these areas. Applied exercises will illustrate the use of some of the methods covered in the course. Familiarity with econometrics at the level of a first-year graduate course or an advanced undergraduate course is a prerequisite. Some knowledge of generalised method of moments and panel data methods would be particularly useful background. For a definitive ranking of the mathematical and theoretical skills needed for this course, please view the upcoming 2025 brochure.
Choose to follow the Applied Microeconomics Pathway to deepen your knowledge of Applied Economy with courses in Production Functions and Price-Cost Markups (morning session) and The Economics of Digital Economy (afternoon session). Or mix and match, choosing different morning or afternoon sessions from our other pathways: Econometrics or Macroeconomics.
