Industrial Agglomeration Externalities, City Size, and Regional Economic Development： Empirical Research Based on Dynamic Panel Data of 283 Cities and GMM Method

Local governments have long been ardently pursuing the industrial specialization effect(MAR externalities) and industrial diversification effect(Jacobs externalities). Such a pursuit has resulted in severe distortion of resource allocation and negative effect on sustainability of local economic development. Regarding the effect from both MAR and Jacobs externalities on local economic development existing literature records notable disputes. Therefore, for local economic development, one important issue is which externality(MAR or Jacobs) can better bring the effect into play. By studying a panel data of 283 Chinese cities from 2003 to 2012 and applying dynamic plane data GMM method, this paper conducted a regression analysis of the relationship among industrial agglomeration externalities, city size, and regional economic development. The result indicates that with regard to the whole nation, MAR externalities are conducive to regional economy development whereas Jacobs externalities will, to an extent, restrain regional economic development. As regards eastern, middle, and western regions, MAR externalities are conducive only to the economic development of the eastern region; their effects on middle and western regions are insignificant. Moreover, the interaction item between MAR externalities and city size has a significant negative synergistic effect on national economic development and a certain acceleration effect on eastern region as well as a strong negative synergistic effect on the middle region and an insignificant effect on the western region. The interaction item between Jacobs externalities and city size has a positive synergistic effect on only the middle region and has an insignificant synergistic effect on both eastern and western regions. Capital stock and labor input have significant accelerating effects on GDP growth per capita of Chinese cities, whereas material capital and labor input remain primary driving forces for Chinese local economic development. Furthermore, human capital contributes to accelerating urban economic development, whereas government intervention restrains urban economic development.

Balanced Development of Internal and External Trade

The CMC International and Domestic Trade Division under the China National Machinery Import & Export Corporation has, in accordance with the CMC’s strategic goals, worked out the following business guidelines: internal trade is the basis of external trade, and external trade is a supplementary to internal trade; domestic and overseas markets and resources should be used effectively, and internal trade and external trade should be coordinated and handled in a unified way. The Division’s business concept is to conduct trade-dominated business backed by

Is the Long-term Economic Decline of the Philippines Unstoppable? Trends, Reasons, Outlook

The Philippines was in the 1960s a model of development in Asia and second to Japan,but occupies presently only the 11th position under South-East and East Asian countries in terms of GDP-per capita.The article explores why this important Asian country with a long colonial past and enormous economic potential still ranks under lower-income countries and has in the last decades let pass by many other Asian countries.In answering this question,the approach of external triggers for accelerated development is being applied.In stark contrast to the success stories of the strongly outward-looking Asian countries like the four Tigers,later of Thailand and Vietnam the Philippines never developed a vision of an open economy connecting pro-actively to the world markets.Trade is hampered by a non-competitive and highly protected national economy.The existing FDI is more oriented to the profitable local markets.Foreign debts were never effectively used and international tourism was never well promoted.Linking these failures to the existing power structures in the country,it seems very much that the backward forces like the big landowners,the local producers and industrialists never wanted and continue not to want to open up the economy to international competition and governments are complacent with these groups.Various indicators demonstrate the long-term decline of the Philippines:Among them the slow growth of the GDP and the continuously high poverty rates.As the alliance of big business and policy holds firm no change in the failing nationalistic economic model can be detected leaving the bleak outlook that the economic decline will continue.

China’s Development Should Respond to The New External Challenges

The international financial crisis has entered its fifth year,the euro-zone sovereign debt crisis is still fermenting,world economic growth is weak,the future development of China is facing multiple challenges and its external environment for sustainable development strategy witnesses a number of risks and uncertainties.