To Örebro University

Så länge kommuner har funnits har de även haft bolag och ständigt har detta varit ett ämne för debatt, där farhågor för demokratin och konkurrens lyfts. I en nyligen publicerad rapport studerar vi framväxten av kommunala bolag och granskar produktivitetsutvecklingen i dessa, som enligt beslutsfattare är ett av de viktigaste motiven till verksamhet i bolagsform.

Svenska kommuner äger och bedriver sedan länge verksamhet i bolagsform, men står ut i internationell jämförelse genom det stora antalet kommunala bolag och storleken på dessa. Antalet bolag fortsätter dessutom att öka och spelar en viktig roll i kommunsektorns utveckling och de välfärdstjänster som sektorn tillhandahåller. Vad kan förklara denna utveckling? Baserat på data för perioden 2000-2020 finner vi att befolkningststorleken är positivt korrelerad med antalet bolag. Det tenderar alltså att vara så att stora kommuner har fler bolag än små kommuner, men befolkningsstorleken förklarar däremot inte varför bolagen i en genomsnittlig kommun växer i omfång i termer av antal anställda per invånare. Vidare finns det samband som indikerar att de kommunala bolagen i en genomsnittlig kommun blir fler och växer i termer av andel sysselsatta när skatteunderlaget ökar och den lokala arbetslösheten stiger. Vad gäller de strukturella mönstren tycks det existera lokala kluster av geografiskt närliggande kommuner med många kommunala bolag. Detta kan tyda på att kommuner imiterar varandra. När vi studerar produktiviteten i de enskilda bolagen så finner vi att de presterar ungefär lika bra som sina privata motsvarigheter. Produktivitetsutvecklingen i ett genomsnittligt kommunalt bolag skiljer sig i de flesta fall inte från ett privat bolag i samma bransch, med undantag för en bransch där den är lägre och en annan bransch där den är högre.

The objective of this paper is to analyze relative employment effects in Sweden due to offshoring. In contrast to most previous studies in this field, our analysis is based on firm level data. More specifically the dataset contains Swedish manufacturing firms, 1997-2002. In addition we have access to actual firm level import data on intermediate goods and services, respectively. The results show that the relative demand for high skilled labor is positively affected by service offshoring and offshoring of goods to Asia, but negatively affected by offshoring to high income countries. The relative demand for medium skilled labor is negatively affected by offshoring of goods to Eastern Europe, but positively affected by offshoring to high income countries. In contrast to expectations, the results show that the relative demand for low skilled labor is positively affected by offshoring of goods to Eastern Europe. However, these results are related to very small elasticities, which in turn translates into a small number of jobs affected.

Based on firm level data for the Swedish manufacturing sector the objective of this paper is to analyze relative labor demand effects due to offshoring. Actual firm-level trade data allow us to distinguish between goods and service offshoring, as well as sourcing country. Overall, our results give no support to the fears that offshoring of goods or services lead to out-location of high-skilled activity in Swedish firms. Rather, this paper finds robust evidence that the aggregate effects from offshoring lead to increasing relative demand of high-skilled labor, mainly due to serviceoffshoring to middle income countries.

Based on firm-level data over the period 1997-2002 for the Swedish manufacturing sector the objective of this paper is to analyze relative labor demand effects due to offshoring, separating between materials and services offshoring and also geographical location of trade partner. Overall, our results give no support to the fears that offshoring of materials or services lead to out-location of high-skilled activity in Swedish firms. Rather, this paper finds evidence that the aggregate effects from offshoring lead to increasing relative demand of high-skilled labor, mainly due to services offshoring to middle income countries.

The objective of this paper was to analyse effects on firm–level relative demand for skilled labour due to imports of intermediates (offshoring) and exports of intermediates (inshoring). The study is based on a data set of Swedish manufacturing firms, 1997–2002, using trade flows in intermediate goods and services, respectively. Descriptive data show that goods inshoring is much larger than goods offshoring, while the reverse is true for services. There is, however, a strong increase in services inshoring over the study period. Controlling for potential endogeneity in offshoring and inshoring, our results indicate that there is a positive effect of services offshoring on the skill composition of workers in Swedish firms, while no such causality can be established from inshoring.

Our aim in this paper is to evaluate the causal effect of foreign acquisition on research and development (R&D) intensity in targeted domestic firms. We are able to distinguish domestic multinational enterprises (MNEs) and non-MNEs, which allows us to investigate the fear that the change in ownership of domestic MNEs to foreign MNEs leads to a reduction in R&D activity in the country. Overall, our results give no support to the fears that foreign acquisition of domestic firms leads to a relocation of R&D activity in Swedish MNEs. Rather, in this paper, we find robust evidence that foreign acquisitions lead to increasing R&D intensity in acquired domestic MNEs and non-MNEs.

Our aim in this paper is to evaluate the causal effect of foreign acquisition on research and development (R&D) intensity in targeted domestic firms. We are able to distinguish domestic multinational enterprises (MNEs) and non-MNEs, which allows us to investigate the fear that the change in ownership of domestic MNEs to foreign MNEs leads to a reduction in R&D activity in the country. Overall, our results give no support to the fears that foreign acquisition of domestic firms leads to a relocation of R&D activity in Swedish MNEs. Rather, in this paper, we find robust evidence that foreign acquisitions lead to increasing R&D intensity in acquired domestic MNEs and non-MNEs. © 2016 by World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd. All rights reserved.

The aim of this paper is to evaluate the causal effect of foreign acquisition on R&D intensity in targeted domestic firms. We are able to distinguish domestic multinationals and non-multinationals, which allows us to investigate the fear that the change in ownership of domestic to foreign multinationals leads to a reduction in R&D activity in the country, as headquarter activities are relocated to the new owner's home country. We use unique and rich firm level data for the Swedish manufacturing sector and different micro-econometric estimation strategies in order to control for the potential endogeneity of the acquisition dummy. Overall, our results give no support to the fears that foreign acquisition of domestic firms lead to a brain drain of R&D activity in Swedish MNEs. Rather, this paper finds robust evidence that foreign acquisitions lead to increasing R&D intensity in acquired domestic MNEs and non-MNEs.

With foreign ownership of domestic companies becoming increasingly common, questions are mounting as to the consequences. One area of concern is the effect on research and development. This column presents new evidence from Sweden, where flagship firms such as Volvo and Saab are now foreign owned, that it hopes will reassure policymakers.

This paper investigates the employment effects of. foreign acquisitions in acquired firms in Swedish manufacturing during the 1990s; a period characterized by a dramatic increase in foreign ownership. We find some evidence of positive employment effects in acquired firms and it seems that the employment of skilled labor increases more than that of less-skilled labor. Our results indicate that the positive employment effects are more pronounced in acquired non-MNEs than in Swedish MNEs. Furthermore, we observe shifts in skill intensities toward higher shares of skilled labor in non-MNEs taken over by foreign MNEs, but not in acquired Swedish MNEs.

This paper investigates the employment effects of foreign acquisitions in acquired firms in Swedish manufacturing during the 1990s, a period characterized by a dramatic increase in foreign ownership. To handle likely endogeneity problems, we evaluate the effects of foreign acquisitions on the targeted firms’ employment by combining propensity score matching with difference-in-difference estimation. We find some evidence of positive employment effects in firms taken over by foreigners and it seems that the employment of skilled labor increases more than the employment of less-skilled labor. Moreover, we examine whether the employment impact of foreign ownership differs between takeovers of Swedish MNEs and non-MNEs. Our results indicate that the positive employment effects only appear in acquired non-MNEs. Furthermore, we observe shifts in skill intensities toward higher shares of skilled labor in non-MNEs taken over by foreign MNEs but not in acquired Swedish MNEs.

The aim of this article is twofold. First, we analyze whether the decision of where to import from is affected by firms' ex-ante characteristics. Second, we analyze how the origin of imports affects firms' productivity, export sales, and the number of export markets. Using extensive data on Swedish manufacturing firms from 2007 to 2020, we uncover several significant insights. Nearly 80% of the firms engage in international trade. The smallest firms operate exclusively as exporters, medium-sized firms as importers, and the largest firms engage in two-way trading. While most imports originate from high-wage countries, there has been a gradual shift to low-wage countries over time. Self-selection is evident, with highly productive firms importing from all sources, followed by firms that exclusively import from either low-wage or high-wage countries, and the lowest-productive firms not importing. By controlling for self-selection using the Event Study approach and difference-in-differences matching estimator, we find that large importing firms exhibit no significant differences in productivity and export sales in comparison to their non-importing counterparts. However, small importing firms show increased productivity growth, driven by high-wage imports. Both small and large firms importing from high- and low-wage countries tend to access more high-wage export markets than non-importers.

This paper presents recent trends in the foreign activities of Swedish multinationals. The focus is on the distribution of production and R&D between the MNCs' domestic and foreign units, and the pattern of trade within the firms. Issues concerning entry modes and the importance of information technology in coordinating geographically dispersed production are also highlighted. Despite considerable improvements in the conditions for industrial activities in Sweden, the trend towards increased internationalization of Swedish firms has continued. After a noticeable increase in the share of foreign production located in the former European Community between 1986 and 1990, the recent development suggests a return to a regional distribution of foreign activities similar to the one prevailing in 1986. In the 1990s the increase in foreign production by Swedish MNCs has been concentrated to the NAFTA-countries, Asia and Eastern Europe. Another striking result is the pronounced increase in the share of foreign R&D that has taken place between 1990 and 1994.

The ICONS project investigates the relationship between innovation and the international competitiveness of service industries. The various empirical studies produced within the project make use of a rich variety of data sources on the innovative activities and international performance of thousands enterprises in both manufacturing and service industries in the Nordic countries, and complement these with data at a more aggregate (industry- and country-) level of analysis. In order to shed new light on this engaging, broad and complex field of research, the project aims at three more specific (and interrelated) objectives: (1) the investigation of differences across industries in terms of their technological activities and economic dynamics, in order to highlight the main drivers of the process of structural change and industrial transformation in the long run; (2) the analysis of the link between innovation and economic performance at the firm-level, and of the extent to which this relationship is affected by sector-specific characteristics related to technological and market conditions specific to each industry; (3) the study of the patterns and determinants of different internationalisation channels and strategies that are undertaken by Nordic enterprises in the service sectors.

This paper analyses the relationship between offshoring of services and total factor productivity across three different OECD countries: Ireland, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Offshoring activity is widely believed to play an important role for firm productivity due to the fragmentation of the production process across countries when there are differences in the relative endowments of skilled and unskilled labour and of technology. The paper firstly shows that offshoring firms tend to be more labour productive, are larger, pay higher wages and are more likely to be multinational and foreign-owned. Secondly, there appears to be some suggestive evidence of a positive relationship between offshoring and firm productivity although the statistical and/or economic significance of this relationship is not very strong across the three countries. One possible explanation is the small time horizon over which our analysis span.

Offshoring is an important aspect of firms’ internationalization. However, offshoring comes at a cost, especially where information or trust is lacking. Immigrant employees could reduce such offshoring costs through their knowledge of their former home countries and via access to foreign networks. We develop a framework of heterogeneous final-good firms to guide our empirical analysis and draw on new employer-employee data for approximately 12,000 Swedish firms during the time period 1998-2007. Our results support the hypothesis that immigrant employees spur offshoring activities by firms through lower offshoring costs. Hiring one additional foreign-born worker can increase offshoring up to three percent on average, with skilled migrants having the strongest effects. 

Offshoring provides firms with opportunities for internationalization and growth. But, offshoring comes at a cost, especially in presence of inadequate information and trust friction. Immigrant employees could reduce such offshoring transaction costs through their knowledge of former home countries and via access to foreign networks. This is the first firm-level study on migration and offshoring. In estimating a firm-level gravity model on new employer-employee data for approximately 12,000 Swedish firms during the time period 1998-2007, we are able to show that immigrant employees have a significant and positive impact on offshoring. Hiring one additional foreign-born worker can spur offshoring with up to three percent on average, and even more to low-income countries. The findings of this study could have potentially important policy implications. In addition to showing that immigrants could provide options for countries that aim to promote offshoring, the results introduce a completely new channel through which migration may promote development, through offshoring. This could encourage governments of developed nations to enhance their emphasis on migration as a tool for supporting private sector development in emerging economies.

Offshoring continues to be an important dimension of firms' internationalization choices. However, offshoring also increases contract enforcement costs by inhibiting the coordination and monitoring of performance. Immigrant employees may reduce such costs through their specific knowledge of the employer, their country of birth and access to foreign networks. In this paper, we investigate the role of immigrant employees within firms on firm offshoring, employing rich administrative Swedish microlevel data that include specific information about the characteristics of employees, manufacturing firms and their bilateral offshoring. Our results support the hypothesis that immigrant employees increase offshoring by lowering contract enforcement costs. Hiring one additional immigrant employee is linked to a relatively larger increase in offshoring at the intensive than the extensive margin, on average. The association to offshoring is considerably stronger for skilled immigrant employees and for contract and R&D intensive offshoring. Instrumental variable estimations demonstrate qualitatively similar results, while a placebo test with randomized immigrant employment does not generate any link between immigrants and offshoring.

Många insatser syftar till att öka sannolikheten att barn och ungdomar klarar av skolan. Det kan handla om olika typer av extra stöd i skolan, läxhjälp eller insatser för att förbättra den mentala hälsan. Men vad är egentligen värdet av dessa insatser? I denna artikel beräknar vi nettonuvärdet av att en individ klarar behörigheten till ett nationellt gymnasieprogram. Vi visar även på hur detta kan användas för att utvärdera olika typer av tidiga insatser. 

Some long-term societal benefits of early psychosocial interventions supporting children and youth at various developmental risks can be estimated with school results as a mediatory. In this paper we develop causal education-earnings links for educational achievement thresholds at the end of the nine-year compulsory school (CS) and the three-year upper secondary school (USS) in Sweden. Gross earnings are calculated with age profiles estimated on micro-level register data for the whole population. We also estimate the indirect costs of education (forgone earnings) with this data and find that they can be ignored. For the base case, we calculate the expected net present value of meeting minimum requirements for transition from CS to a national USS-program to €112,000 (SEK 1.1 million) and for graduation from such a program to €163,000 (SEK 1.6 million).

This thesis consists of four essays dealing with the role of foreign owned firms for the development of productivity and exports in Swedish manufacturing. The essays share a common theme, i.e. that multinational firms (MNF) possess some intangible assets that could be transferred to their affiliates.

In Chapter II we find that the foreign-owned firms in Swedish manufacturing have a higher productivity (both level and growth) compared to Swedish domestic firms even after controlling for other variables affecting productivity. Moreover, this is not due to reverse causality, i.e. that foreign investors tend to acquire the most productive Swedish firms and that this would explain the difference in productivity. We also find that Swedish MNFs are as productive as foreign-owned firms and that the productivity effect of foreign ownership may differ according to mode of entry. Greenfield operations are found to be more productive than those in acquired firms.

Chapter III revisits the question of whether ownership matters for productivity performance. An extensive literature has shown that it is important to study the counterfactual outcome, i.e. what would the outcome be had the domestic firm never been acquired? We use a propensity score matching estimator to compare similar treated and untreated firms. We then apply the difference-in-difference estimator and show that there is a positive effect on productivity due to foreign acquisition. Moreover, this effect on productivity does not occur immediately but starts around three years post acquisition. Foreign ownership is also found to boost productivity growth, not just the level of productivity.

In Chapter IV we analyze whether FDI stimulates the productivity performance in domestic firms in the same industry and/or region or not. While most other studies using firm level data find no evidence of such externalities from FDI, we provide strong evidence for the existence of spillover effects from inward FDI to domestic firms. These spillover effects cannot be explained by reverse causality. We also find that the magnitude of these spillover effects depends on the absorptive capacity (measured as R&D expenditures) of the domestic firms and the nationality of the parent MNF.

The last study in this thesis, Chapter V considers whether the effect of increased inward FDI has a positive or negative effect on domestic firms export behavior. The first case may occur as a result of demonstration effects, when local firms learn from foreign MNF to reduce exporting costs. The second may reveal congestion effects, defined here as the case when MNF contribute to congestion of e.g. transport networks or in general add to demand for inputs, driving up their prices, thus increasing costs of exporting for local firms. We also consider whether FDI affect the sunk costs or variable costs of exporting. Our results indicate that congestion effects dominate since increased inward FDI has led to a significant reduction in the probability of export market participation.

This study analyzes the difference between foreign and domestic ownership of firms with respect to productivity. Recent literature has shown that it is important to study the counter-factual outcome, i.e. what would the outcome be had the domestic firm never been acquired? The analysis is based on a panel of Swedish firm level data. In order to isolate the casual effects due to a takeover a propensity score matching estimator is applied to compare similar treated and untreated firms. The difference-in-difference estimations show that there is a positive effect of foreign acquisition on productivity. Foreign acquisitions increase the productivity in the acquired Swedish firms by between 3 and 11% depending on the estimator chosen. Moreover, this productivity difference does not occur immediately but starts between 1-5 years post acquisition.

We analyze how service offshoring by Swedish firms is affected by corruption in source countries. The results suggest that firms avoid corrupt countries and that corruption reduces the volume of service offshoring. Analyzing firm heterogeneity, we find that large and internationalized firms are the ones that are the most sensitive to corruption. In addition, sensitivity to corruption tends to increase with falling income in source countries. These results suggest that the gains from reduced corruption may be the greatest for poor countries. 

A key feature of the Swedish economy over the last two decades has been the rapid internationalisation of its economy, both through FDI and exports. In this paper we consider their inter-relationship, examining whether there have been spillovers from foreign firms to the export performance of domestic firms. We also contribute to the empirical modelling of export spillovers. We do this by exploiting information on whether foreign MNE sales are intra-firm or inter-firm, and by allowing for heterogeneity in the characteristics of the sender and receiver of spillovers. Our results indicate that foreign MNEs had positive effects on Swedish exports.

A key feature of the Swedish economy over the last two decades has been the rapid internationalisation of its economy, both through FDI and exports. In this paper we consider their inter-relationship, examining whether there have been spillovers from foreign firms to the export performance of domestic firms. We also contribute to the empirical modelling of export spillovers. We do this by exploiting information on whether foreign MNE sales are intra-firm or inter-firm, and by allowing for heterogeneity in the characteristics of the sender and receiver of spillovers. Our results indicate that foreign MNEs had positive effects on Swedish exports.

Based on a panel of data for Swedish manufacturing firms in 1990-2000, this paper finds strong evidence for the existence of positive spillover effects from inward FDI. The presence of foreign ownership in the same industry and region seems to  enhance the total factor productivity of domestic firms. Moreover, the size of these FDI spillover effects seems to depend both on the nationality of the foreign MNF as well as on the absorptive capacity of the domestic firm, measured by its own R&D. It appears that this positive relationship between foreign presence and productivity cannot be explained as a consequence of reverse causality, i.e that FDI is attracted to highly productive regions and industries.

National concerns are occasionally raised against offshoring economic activities to other countries. While most of the existing literature has focused on the effects on labour demand and productivity, the effects on domestic R&D have largely been neglected. Using Swedish firm-level data, we analyse the effects of material offshoring on the R&D intensity of domestic firms. The results suggest that the overall impact of offshoring on R&D is negative. The negative effect on home country R&D stems from offshoring by small firms from other high-income countries. Conversely, offshoring increases home country R&D among large firms. As large firms perform the bulk of Swedish R&D, the net effect of offshoring on R&D is positive.

In this paper, we analyze how the offshoring of services by Swedish firms is affected by corruption in target economies. Taking stance from the gravity model of trade, we analyze how the choice of country, volume and composition of offshored services is affected by the presence of corruption in target economies. The results suggest that corruption is a deterrent for service offshoring. Firms avoid corrupt countries, and corruption reduces the amount of offshored services. In addition, the sensitivity to corruption is highest for poor countries, and large and internationalized firms are the ones that tend to be the most sensitive to corruption. Given the importance of large firms as international investors and subcontractors, this adds yet another argument for fighting corruption.

In this paper, we provide novel evidence on the adjustment of multinational enterprises (MNEs) to corrupt environments. We examine if the corruption barrier to entry is reduced by corruption experience (i.e., previous investment in a corrupt system) using a rich enterprise data set on Swedish manufacturers' activities in the 1997-2015 period. A mixed logit model, which accounts for enterprise-specific market substitution patterns, is used to ensure the accuracy of estimates. Our findings show that a strong deterrent effect of corruption is counteracted by corruption experience, which implies that MNEs learn to adjust to reduce corruption entry costs. Multinational enterprises that acquire corruption experience gain a competitive advantage over other enterprises.

The central prediction of the Aghion, Bloom, Blundell and Howitt model is an inverted U-shaped relationship between innovation and competition. The model is built on the assumption of a product market and has not yet been tested on the service sector. Using detailed firm-level data on Swedish service-sector firms, we find evidence of an inverse U-shaped relationship for exporting service-sector firms. A further breakdown of innovation expenditures shows that the inverse U-shaped pattern holds for intramural R&D and training, but not for extramural R&D. Finally, the results indicate that as competition increases, small firms tend to seek strategic alliances with competitors, whereas large firms tend to reduce collaboration with competitors. The behavior of large firms can partly be due to their superior capacity to handle innovation projects internally, which will become more important if increased competition results in higher pay-offs to innovation.