We review the related academic literature and the international evidence on the institutions of regulation and competition policy, to analyze the creation in 2013 of the new macro regulator in Spain, the CNMC. The institutional reform merged the competition policy authority with virtually all sector regulators with the exception of the financial regulator. The aim of the paper is to assess the extent to which the Spanish reform follows international best practices as well as how it fits within the analysis found in the academic literature. Although there is not a universally superior approach, neither in practice nor in theory, important shortcomings remain with the model that was finally adopted in Spain. Some institutional diversity would facilitate an optimal level of regulatory independence and governmental coordination for each sector, and ultimately achieving better results in terms of consumer welfare.
This paper looks at a county's central government optimal policy in a setting where its two identical local regions compete for the attraction of footloose multinationals to their sites, and where the considered multinationals strictly prefer this country to the rest of the world. For the sake of reality the model allows the local regions to choose between the implementation of firm-specific and non-firm-specific policies. We find that, even though the two local regions are identical, some degree of regional tax competition is good for country's welfare. Moreover, we show that the implementation of the regional firmspecific policies weakly welfare dominates the implementation of the regional non-firmspecific ones. Hence the not infrequent calls for the central government to ban the former type of policies go against the advice of this paper.
La liberalización del transporte aéreo que se llevó a término en la Unión Europea a principios de los años noventa ha tenido efectos positivos sobre el bienestar del viajero. No obstante, existe un consenso en la literatura académica que estos efectos dependen de la existencia de una competencia efectiva en el nivel de la ruta. En este sentido, se plantea el problema que puede llegar a suponer las ventajas de escalera de las compañías dominantes en cada mercado interior. Además, se pretende capturar la diferenciación de productos como característica esencial de la industria del transporte aéreo. El análisis de estas cuestiones se realiza de la forma siguiente. En primer lugar, se hace referencia a los principales aspectos económicos que condicionan la competencia en el transporte aéreo. Y en segundo lugar, se implementa un modelo empírico basado en un sistema de tres ecuaciones, que se estima mediante la técnica de las variables instrumentales. La muestra utilizada hace referencia al año 2001 para la mayoría de las rutas del mercado interior español de vuelos regulares en dónde hay competencia. Los resultados de la estimación muestran la existencia de unas condiciones de competencia diferentes según el segmento del mercado al cual se dirigen las compañías aéreas. Efectivamente, la competencia en precios (calidad) parece ser predominante en el segmento de viajeros por motivos personales (negocios). Adicionalmente, el dominio que la compañía dominante tiene sobre la mayoría de las rutas parece descansar en las ventajas competitivas, tanto en términos de costes como en términos de demanda, que le proporciona el control de la red aeroportuaria nacional. De todo esto se puede inferir que el mantenimiento y/o aumento de los beneficios de la liberalización de los servicios de transporte aéreo exige extender la liberalización al uso del aeropuertos así como descentralizar su gestión. ; - La liberalització del transport aeri que es va dur a terme a la Unió Europea a principis dels anys noranta ha tingut efectes positius sobre el benestar del viatger. No obstant, existeix un consens en la literatura acadèmica que aquests efectes depenen de la existència d'una competència efectiva en el nivell de la ruta. En aquest sentit, es planteja el problema que pot arribar a suposar ela avantatges d'escala de les companyies dominants en cada mercat interior. A més, es pretén capturar la diferenciació de productes com a característica essencial de la indústria del transport aeri. L'anàlisi d'aquestes qüestions es realitza de la forma següent. En primer lloc, es fa referència als principals aspectes econòmics que condicionen la competència en el transport aeri. I en segon lloc, s'implementa un model empíric basat en un sistema de tres equacions, que se estima mitjançant la tècnica de les variables instrumentals. La mostra utilitzada fa referència a l'any 2001 per a la majoria de les rutes del mercat interior espanyol de vols regulars en on hi ha competència. Els resultats de la estimació mostren l'existència d'unes condicions de competència diferents segons el segment del mercat al qual s'adrecen les companyies aèries. Efectivament, la competència en preus (qualitat) sembla ser predominant en el segment de viatgers per motius personals (negocis). Addicionalment, el domini que la companyia dominant té sobre la majoria de les rutes sembla descansar en els avantatges competitius, tant en termes de costos com en termes de demanda, que li proporciona el control de la xarxa aeroportuària nacional. De tot això es pot inferir que el manteniment i/o augment dels beneficis de la liberalització dels serveis de transport aeri exigeix estendre la liberalització a l'ús del aeroports així com descentralitzar la seva gestió ; The liberalisation of air transport that took place in the European Union at the beginning of the nineties has involved positive effects on the welfare traveller. However, there is an agreement in the academic literature that such effects depend on the existence of an effective competition at the level of the route. In this way, we deal with competition concerns referred to the scale advantages of major airlines in each domestic market. In addition to this, we try to capture product differentiation as one of the essential features of the airline industry. In order to achieve these goals, we firstly analyse the main economic aspects that determine competition in the airline industry. And secondly, we implement an empirical model based on a three equations system, which is estimated through the instrumental variables technique. The sample used includes most of routes of the Spanish domestic market of regular flights where competition does exist for 2001. Our results show the existence of different competition conditions according to the market segment in which airlines address their services. Indeed, price (quality) competition seems to be dominant in the segment of leisure (business) passengers. Furthermore, we also find that the major airline¿s dominance of the market relies on the competitive advantages in terms of cost and demand that provides the control of the Spanish airport network. We conclude that the maintenance and/or increase of the air liberalisation benefits require expanding liberalisation to airports space allocation and decentralising its management
Tax incidence and tax competition have largely been studied separately. Models assessing the incidence of excise taxes do not consider strategic interaction and exclusively assess the pass-through of taxes to prices. These settings focus on imperfectly competitive markets where prices can react more (less) than proportionally to a variation in tax rates. On the other hand, tax competition models focus on the strategic interactions arising because of a shared tax base but assume producer prices to be constant. Hence, the pass-through of taxes is restricted to be fully on consumers. This paper extends Keen (1997) by relaxing this assumption and, thus, by allowing local governments to internalize the possibility that taxes are over-shifted (undershifted). Interestingly, market structure (that was absent in previous settings), turns out to be one of the determinants of the vertical reaction function in this model; particularly determining the sensitivity of local tax setters to a variation of higher-tier taxes.
In Europe there are countries whose welfare system is more in the tradition of Beveridge (based on universal flat benefits) and others whose system is mainly Bismarkian (based on benefits related to past contributions).Labor mobility across different countries raises concerns about the sustainability of the most generous and redistributive insurance systems. We address the sustainability of more redistributive insurance systems in a context of labor mobility. In a two/countries seting We find out that a Bismarkian insurance policy is never affected by migration but that the Beveridgean one is. Moreover, our results suggest that the race-to-the-bottom affecting tax rates may be more important under Beveridge-Beveridge competition than under Beveridge-Bismarck competition. Additionally, Bismarkian governments may find it beneficially to adopt a Beveridgean policy.
Competition policy is a dynamic process in which two questions arise: the configuration of the institutional framework and, on the other hand, the potential negative effects of the reforms processes. Based on surveys to employers (International Institute for Management Development, IMD), this paper evaluates the evolution of the effectiveness of competition policy at international level and how some countries' competition policy (or authority) reforms change this perceived effectiveness: United Kingdom, France, Netherlands, Finland and Spain. Results show that the last Spanish competition policy reform (creation of the CNMC), was non-positive, despite some improvements in recent years.
Las políticas e instituciones están sometidas a ciclos de reforma y contra-reforma. Éstas pueden impulsar periodos de auge o declive en la efectividad de las políticas públicas. Estos ciclos son especialmente volátiles y amplios en los países que tienen problemas de estabilidad institucional. En España, la política de competencia ilustra estos ciclos volátiles y amplios en la efectividad de las políticas públicas como pocas otras. En los últimos 20 años (1995-2014), España ha vivido dos ciclos completos de intensos auges y declives en la efectividad de la política de competencia, con una ganancia media de efectividad del 14 por 100. El último ciclo de diez años (2005-2014) ha recogido un aumento destacable y posterior caída en la efectividad de la política de competencia, saldándose sin ganancia significativa en la misma: un inane y desgastante ciclo completo de reforma y contra-reforma. La comparación de resultados con un conjunto de 54 países del mundo muestra que esta volatilidad cíclica en la efectividad de la política de competencia en España es una anormalidad estadística. Dada la relevancia del marco institucional y el enforcement, nuestros resultados apuntan a la necesidad de estabilizar la calidad institucional en materia de competencia como garante de una mayor efectividad de la misma.
The serious economic crisis derived from the pandemic caused by COVID-19 has returned the leading role in the debate on taxation in the European Union. I currently perform as an advisor on matters related to taxation in a city heritage company of Girona. I graduated in Accounting and Finance in 2018 and this year in Law at this high school, and I am passionate about investments and matters related to taxation. When I was studying Accounting and Finance, I did a Final Degree Project on the creation of software companies and the tax advantages taken advantage of by them. As a corollary of that investigation I was able to verify the existence of harmful tax competition that exists within the European Union and how it is exploited by the different digital companies, located within certain legal frameworks causing a great loss of collection in some States because of these practices
Several theoretical papers that examine tax competition with agglomeration effects have stressed the possibility that the governments of jurisdictions in which economic activity is concentrated may tax firms more heavily (taxable agglomeration rents). In this paper, we examine the tax rate setting decisions taken with regard to the Spanish municipal business tax (Impuesto sobre Actividades Económicas). The analysis, carried out with a sample of 2,772 municipalities, focuses on the effect that urbanization economies, localization economies and the market potential of municipalities have on their business tax rates. High urbanization economies and high localization economies are found to increase the business tax rate. Although the evidence is weaker, the results also indicate that municipalities with better access to demand (of consumers) set higher tax rates.
[spa] La investigación analiza el proceso de integración económica internacional y la competitividad de los países en transición de la Europa central (PEC) desde una perspectiva global. Defiende que el modelo de inserción de estos países en la economía mundial ha cambiado sustancialmente, pasando a predominar los sectores de sofisticación tecnológica media y alta e intensivos en capital físico y humano, y encuentra como principales impulsores del cambio estructural la apertura exterior y el objetivo estratégico de integración en la UE. El año 1997 aparece como el punto de inflexión clave, vinculado al aumento de las inversiones extranjeras directas y al cambio estratégico de las empresas multinacionales. No obstante, el proceso de globalización también ha influido, por la fuerte irrupción de los países asiáticos y la recuperación de los mercados de los países ex CAEM. El estudio también evidencia una mejora en la posición competitiva de estos países, que se encuentra ya muy próxima a los países de la UE-Sur, y defiende que la competitividad internacional ya no descansa sólo en las ventajas de costes, sino también en variables distintas al precio. No obstante, la investigación pone de relieve que todavía existen importantes retos a superar como el fenómeno de la dualización industrial, las asimetrías territoriales, la escasa capacidad de innovación y la limitada presencia en las regiones emergentes más dinámicas. Aunque en los últimos años se están observando mejoras relativas en algunos de estos aspectos, se considera necesario un papel más activo de los gobiernos y una mayor voluntad de apoyo por parte de la Unión Europea. ; [eng] THE INSERTION MODEL AND COMPETITIVE POSITION OF THE CENTRAL-EASTERN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES WITHIN THE CURRENT WORLDWIDE CONTEXT. This research looks into the process of international economic integration and competitiveness of the central-eastern European countries from a global perspective. It argues that the insertion model for bringing these countries into the mainstream of the world economy has undergone significant change, where sectors employing a medium to high level of technological sophistication, with a high physical and human capital are gaining the upper hand, finding the international openness and the strategic goal of EU membership as the core of the thrust which is leading structural changes. In this context, the year 1997 can be credited as being the watershed, linked to the rise in foreign direct investment and the strategic changes made by the major multinationals. Nevertheless, the process of globalisation has also born an influence, most notably for the great impact caused by the Asian countries on the international scene and the recovery of markets from states of the former Comecon block. This work also sheds light on the improvement in the competitive position of the central¬eastern European countries, now in a position not far removed from those of the southern EU countries, underlining the assertion that international competitiveness does not depend solely on cost advantage, but on a number of variables apart from just price. It should be pointed out though that research has brought to light a number of important challenges to be overcome, such as that of the phenomenon of the dualisation of industry, territorial imbalances, a shortage of innovational skills and a limited presence in some of the most dynamic emerging regions. Even if in recent years some of the above have experienced movement in the right direction, it is nevertheless felt that governments should be taking a more active role and a greater determination to support the region be expressed in real terms by the European Union.
Màster de Direcció d'Entitats Asseguradores i Financeres, Universitat de Barcelona, Facultat d'Economia i Empresa, Curs: 2020-2021, Tutor: Dr. Luis María Sáez de Jáuregui Sanz ; La eficiencia de las estructuras comerciales internas de las entidades aseguradoras (que deberán cumplir con los requisitos de la normativa europea de IDD para dar servicio a los distintos canales de distribución y a los clientes), seran una de las claves del éxito de las ventas en el contexto actual de competitividad y rentabilidad, y sus capacidades y la agilidad en la adaptación que tengan a las nuevas realidades del mercado y del comportamiento híbrido y phygital del cliente (dando pie a estrategias omnicanal), determinarán el crecimiento y posicionamiento de sus respectivas entidades.
El trabajo presenta la definición y evolución de un índice agreqado de competítívidad de la economía española frente a los países de la Europa de los doce. El índice se confecciona sobre la base de comparar los costes unitarios de producción intemos con los precios exteriores expresados en pesetas. Se concluye que entre 1987 y 1990 la economía española ha experimentado una acusada pérdida de competitividad resultante de la indeseable mezcla de inflación diferencial positiva, y de una política fiscal expansivo y monetaria contractíva que impulsó al alza la cotización de la peseta. Una consecuencia de ello es la destrucción de parte del tejido productivo industrial que se ha producido en los últimos años. ; Lan honek, Espainiako ekonomiak Hamabien Europako herrialdeei buruz duen konpetitibitate-indize agregatu baten definizioa eta berorren eboluzioa aurkezten ditu. Indize hori, barneko produkzio-kostu unitarioak kanpoko prezioekin konparatzean oinarrituz ezartzen da, pezetatan adierazita. Eta ondoriotzen da, 1987 eta 1990 artean Espainiako ekonomiak konpetitibitate-galera handi bat jasan duela, alde batetik, inflazio diferentzial positibo baten eta, bestetik, pezetaren kotizazloa goraka buitzatu zuen politika fiskal hedakor eta monetapolitika uzkurkor baten arteko nahigabeko nahasmendu baten ondorioz. Eta horren ondorioetako -bat zera dugu orain, industriaren produkzio-ehunaren parte bat desegin egin dela azken urteotan. ; This work offers the definition and evolution of an aggregate index of spanish competitiviness in relation to the others E.E.C. countries. The index is constructed considering the unitary internal production costs and comparing them with external pricess expressed in pesetas. The conclusion is that between 1987 and 1990 the spanish economy has suffered an important loss of competitiviness as a result of a positive inflation diferencial and a bad mixture of restrictiva monetary policy and expansivo fiscal policy that has pushed up the exchange rate of the peseta. A consequence of this has been the destruction of part of the spanish industrial structure.
On the basis of information collected from all the published European Commission's decisions in cartel cases between 1962 and 2014, this paper identifies different stages in the supra‐nationalization of cartel policy at the European Union (EU) level. It analyzes major competition policy reforms, strategies and initiatives taken by the European Commission (EC), and its relationship and interaction with Member States' resistance and other policy players' positions, which offers a new in‐depth study on the history and political economy of a key pillar of EU integration. It also provides a forensic analysis of the sanctioned cartels at each stage. This study shows that the introduction of the leniency programme was a critical juncture that allowed cartel authorities to identify cartels more effectively and to provide evidence for sanctioning collusion much more easily than before. This success was a key determinant for deepening the EU integration in competition policy. The intended drivers and the paradoxically unexpected shifters of such growing integration in cartel policy enforcement at the EU are discussed.
[eng] This thesis analyses the pricing policies used by operators when they establish broadband tariffs. The studies draw on datasets that combine broadband plans' characteristics and tariffs with other sources of data at country level to reflect the market structure and regulation activity. The pricing models in this dissertation share the common thread of using three groups of variables to explain the level of broadband prices: 1- the characteristics of the broadband service, 2- the operators' commercial strategies, and 3- the market structure and regulatory policies implemented. The pricing models are estimated using the following econometric techniques: pooled ordinary least squares (OLS) with country and time fixed effects, and two stage least squares (2SLS, instrumental variable techniques). The level of broadband prices concerns both national governments and international organisations, and this dissertation contributes to provide some guidance to regulators and competition authorities, helping them in the implementation of policies so as to foster competition in the market and ultimately stimulate the diffusion of broadband services. The first thesis chapter analyses the determinants of broadband Internet access prices in a group of 15 EU countries between 2008 and 2011. Using a rich panel data set of broadband plans, it is shown how downstream speed (Mbps) increases prices, and that the price per Mbps of cable modem and fibre technologies is lower than that of xDSL. Operators' marketing strategies are also analysed as it is shown how much prices rise when the broadband service is offered in a bundle with voice telephony and/or television, and how much they fall when download volume caps are included. The most insightful results of this study are provided by a group of metrics that represent the situation of competition and entry patterns in the broadband market. It is found that consumer segmentation positively affects prices. Moreover, broadband prices are higher in countries where entrants make greater use of bitstream access and lower in countries where there is an intensive use of direct access (local loop unbundling). However, there is not a significant impact of inter-platform competition on prices. The second chapter analyses the strategies adopted by mobile operators when they set the prices of broadband plans. It is explained that operators design multi-tier price schemes in order to segment consumers according to their preferences. Operators usually offer only a few unlimited usage contracts and three-part tariffs for data limited plans. In the later case, the tariff includes an access fee, a usage allowance (the number of GB that consumers can use for free), and a penalty system for the case in which consumers exceed the contracted allowance. The empirical model shows that the prices of usage based contracts are lower than those of unlimited contracts, and that the monthly price depends on the type of penalty included in the plan. The prices also depend on other characteristics of the service such as the provided technology, the download speed and the telephone call allowances. It is also explained that most plans bundle mobile broadband plans with smartphones. This type of plans last longer and might be more expensive than the plans that only include the SIM card. Specifically, it is shown that the monthly price of the broadband service is more expensive when the plan includes an iPhone or a Samsung. Moreover, it is found that the monthly prices are higher when the plan includes a discount for the acquisition of the smarthphone. Finally, this chapter also studies the effects of market structure and entry regulation on prices and shows that mobile virtual operators have helped to reduce prices. The third chapter studies the mobile broadband market in Spain. The mobile broadband service has experienced a strong expansion in Spain, reaching a penetration of over 70% of the population at the beginning of 2014. This growth can be explained by the benefits that offer the third and the fourth generation of mobile technology, and by the continuous price reductions. In spite of this, prices in Spain are still higher than the European average. This chapter explains the process of technological innovation that has allowed the emergence of mobile broadband, and its launch in Spain. New commercial strategies used by mobile operators, such as bundling and plans that include fixed and mobile services are examined. The analysis shows that the presence of mobile virtual network operators and bundling have been effective in fostering competition and reducing prices. It is also discussed how technological convergence between fixed and mobile services has promoted restructuring and market concentration.
Economic liberalisation has an impact on the economic activity of States and on the balance between government intervention and free markets. The old national service monopolies now have to be reconciled with basic EU economic freedoms. The introduction of new regulatory techniques requires a different kind of administrative body to govern utilities. National Regulatory Agencies have been set up to guarantee that regulation is exercised on an equal basis, without discrimination in favour of the incumbents from the monopoly era. The results and achievements of liberalisation are to some extent dependent on the administrative context. In many cases, European norms stipulate particular procedures for the organisation of public administration. States are no longer free to implement EU legislation in accordance with the paradigm of institutional autonomy: independent regulatory authorities are imposed as a cornerstone of liberalisation. In this paper we analyse three recent examples in which Spain allegedly failed to fulfil its obligations as a EU member State, and contend that Spain's current legislative reforms are at odds with European requirements.
