Spatial Concentration and Firm-Level Productivity in France

38 Pages Posted: 17 Jun 2008

See all articles by Philippe Martin

Philippe Martin

Université Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne - Centre Maison des Sciences Economiques

Thierry Mayer

Université Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne - TEAM; Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées (ENPC) - Centre d'Enseignement et de Recherche en Analyse Socio-Economique (CERAS); CEPII, Centre d'Etudes Prospectives et d'Info. Internationales, Paris; Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

Florian Mayneris

Catholic University of Louvain (UCL) - Center for Operations Research and Econometrics (CORE)

Date Written: June 2008

Abstract

This paper analyzes empirically the effect of spatial agglomeration of activities on the productivity of firms using French individual firm data from 1996 to 2004. This allows us to control for endogeneity biases that the estimation of agglomeration economies typically encounters. French firms benefit from localization economies, but not from urbanization economies nor from competition effects. The benefits generated by increased sectoral clustering, though positive and highly significant are modest and geographically very limited. The gains from clusters are also quite well internalized by firms in their location choice: we find very little difference between the geography that would maximize productivity gains and the geography actually observed.

Keywords: Clusters, localization economies, productivity, spatial concentration

JEL Classification: C23, R10, R11, R12

Suggested Citation

Martin, Philippe and Mayer, Thierry and Mayneris, Florian, Spatial Concentration and Firm-Level Productivity in France (June 2008). CEPR Discussion Paper No. DP6858, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1146822

Philippe Martin (Contact Author)

Université Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne - Centre Maison des Sciences Economiques ( email )

106/112 boulevard de l'Hopital
Paris Cedex 13, 75647
France

Thierry Mayer

Université Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne - TEAM ( email )

106-112 boulevard de l'hôpital
Cedex 13 Paris, P75647
France

HOME PAGE: http://team.univ-paris1.fr/teamperso/mayer/thierry.htm

Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées (ENPC) - Centre d'Enseignement et de Recherche en Analyse Socio-Economique (CERAS) ( email )

28, rue des Saints-Peres
75007 Paris
France
+33 1 4407 8267 (Phone)
+33 1 4407 8267 (Fax)

CEPII, Centre d'Etudes Prospectives et d'Info. Internationales, Paris ( email )

9 Rue Georges Pitard
Paris Cedex 15, F-75015
France

HOME PAGE: http://www.cepii.fr/anglaisgraph/pagepers/mayer.htm

Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

London
United Kingdom

Florian Mayneris

Catholic University of Louvain (UCL) - Center for Operations Research and Econometrics (CORE) ( email )

34 Voie du Roman Pays
B-1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, b-1348
Belgium

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