要旨：我が国のタクシー産業は1993年から段階的に規制緩和が実施されており特に2002年の規制緩和は需給調整機能の廃止を目的とした参入規制や運賃制度の緩和が実施された。本研究の目的は我が国のタクシー産業における需要関数の推計を行い、2002年の規制緩和が消費者の動向へ与えた効果を計測することである。推定結果によれば需要の価格弾力性は負であり、運賃と2002年規制緩和ダミーの交差項は正に有意であるので、価格弾力性は0へ近づいた。つまり、規制緩和によって需要の価格弾力性が小さくなり、消費者にとってタクシーが必需品に近づいたと言える。これは規制緩和に伴って発生した各種新サービスが有効に機能した結果と考えられる。

20120829program　当日天候不良のため、報告は中止されました。

20120829program

20120829program

要旨：The U.S. regional data shows that there is observed a tendency that the skill premium in a region is positively correlated with the relative supply of skill in that region, which suggests there exists something beyond the law of supply and demand. Unlike the typical interpretation by urban economists, this paper provides a simple static two-region general equilibrium model of comparative advantage with monopolistic competition, interpreted as skill-biased technical change, in order to explain the fact without relying on technological externality. It is shown that the ex-ante identical regions specialize in industries with different skill intensities as a result of circular causation working through the interaction between comparative advantage and skill-biased technical change, and the associated essentially unique equilibrium exhibits the positive correlation under a certain set of parameters. The model is then extended by introducing a technological externality in order to argue that technological externality itself does not guarantee welfare improvements given the existence of scarce land. More importantly, it is also argued that the economy-wide skill-biased technical change by reducing the benefit from specialization acts as a dispersion force, and thus it could reduce the welfare gain from technological externality.

要旨：This paper examines the relation between regional unemployment disparities and agglomeration in the presence of labor market frictions. It combines a footloose entrepreneur model with Diamond-Mortensen-Pissarides matching and screening frictions in the labor market within the differentiated-product sector. Under spatial mobility of entrepreneurs, the local unemployment rate is higher in the region with firm agglomeration because of the impact of sectoral allocation among local workers. Regarding the unemployment rate within the local differentiated sector, however, regional market access matters. Given that the spatial equilibrium might be affected mainly via the forward linkage, agglomeration does not necessarily generate a higher unemployment rate within the differentiated sector. Regional unemployment disparities are magnified when regions are more integrated or when labor market friction increases.