An increasing number of literature indicates that the productivity of a country depends to a great degree on the efficiency of resource allocation, and that resource misallocation could give rise to a huge loss of TFP and hence a decrease in the gross output in the country. So does it to the development of a region. As we know,the factors of resources can be obtained either within a region and/or across regions, and misallocation can either occur inside the region or in the interaction with other regions. Therefore, how to rectify resource misallocation within and/or across regions is of enormous importance to regional as well as national economic development. However, the existing researches have only paid close attention to the current use of factor resources without engaging in a full discussion of China's resource misallocation from a regional perspective. Based on the theoretical framework of Hsieh and Klenow (2009),this paper tries to distinguish two dimensions of the original measure of resource misallocation,i.e., within the region and/or across regions. This approach not only adds a different analytical perspective to the literature on regional economy,but also adds a regional perspective to the research on resource misallocation. A unified framework is built to quantitatively measure the resource misallocation within the region and/or across regions. The empirical study based on China's industrial enterprise database shows that there is serious resource misallocation in China as a whole,most of which is misallocation within provinces. In fact,the misallocation within provinces is far more serious than that between provinces. China's TFP could increase by 124-164% if the misallocations within provinces are eliminated,and 4-18% if the factor resources are properly reallocated. In terms of the efficiency of resource allocation within regions (provinces),Zhejiang province has the optimal performance and its allocation efficiency is much higher than other provinces. The most serious level of distortion in resource allocation is found in Gansu province. The resource misallocation within and across regions shows a sustained downward trend from 1998 to 2007,and most provinces,except Xinjiang province,have improved their allocation efficiency over time. Another contribution of this paper is the application of System GMM to the analysis of the important factors that impact on the resource allocation. The empirical results show that the growth of financial market and the reform of ownership structure can reduce misallocation by effectively mitigating the discrimination between state-owned enterprises and non-state-owned enterprises and by redirecting resources toward enterprises with higher efficiency. The empirical results also show that government intervention and market segmentation would impede the free flowing of resources,resulting in the waste or inefficient use of resources,which significantly exacerbates misallocation. In spite of their lower productivity,China's state-owned enterprises can get capital and investment at a lower cost and enjoy more market protection than private firms. With lower barriers in the financial market and less government intervention,resource allocation will be significantly promoted. Following the reforms of the household registration system,there has been greater labor mobility in China. However,due to inadequate protection of laborers' rights,low standards of work safety and absence of the welfare system, more labor mobility has not led to significant improvements in resource allocation. Moreover,the limitations in the modes of export and investment promotion have prevented FDI and foreign trade (exports and imports) from playing a significant role in reducing misallocation.
金祥荣 李旭超 郭晓寒. 资源的跨区域错置和区域内错置——基于中国工业企业数据的实证研究[J]. 浙江大学学报(人文社会科学版), 2016, 2(3): 120-.
Zhang Zhonggen He Lingxiao Nan Yongqing. Resource Misallocation within and across Provinces:An Analysis on China's Industrial Enterprise Database. JOURNAL OF ZHEJIANG UNIVERSITY, 2016, 2(3): 120-.