Browsing by Author "Tilton, JE"

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    Determining the optimal tax on mining
    (2004) Tilton, JE
    This article examines three arguments often raised in support of higher taxes on mining and finds them wanting: First, the wealth or economic rents associated with particularly rich deposits rightfully belong to the citizens of the host country. Second, mining companies should compensate the State and the public for their use of mineral resources, given the intrinsic value arising from their non-renewable nature. Third, the division of the wealth created by mining is unfair. Too much goes to mining companies, and too little to the host country to promote economic development.
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    Labor productivity and comparative advantage in mining: The copper industry in Chile
    (ELSEVIER SCI LTD, 2001) Garcia, P; Knights, PF; Tilton, JE
    Over the past two decades, the copper industry has enjoyed dramatic increases in labor productivity in both Chile and the United States. Recent research attributes most of the increase in the United States to innovation and technological change, rather than the exploitation of higher quality copper deposits due to the development of new mines and a shift in output from low to high productivity mines.
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    Mineral endowment, labor productivity, and comparative advantage in mining
    (2000) Aydin, H; Tilton, JE
    Labor productivity in the U.S. copper mining industry tripled between 1975 and 1995, allowing the industry to recover its comparative advantage. Mine level data on output and labor input indicate that over three-quarters of this increase came from labor productivity growth at individual mines, and less than a quarter from shifts in output from low- to high-productivity mines. This finding supports the hypothesis that new technology and innovation are as important or more important than mineral endowment in shaping labor productivity trends and comparative advantage in mining. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. JEL classification: Q39; F14; J24.
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    The Real, real price of nonrenewable resources
    (2006) Svedberg, P; Tilton, JE
    Over the past 40 years, economists have devoted considerable effort to estimating long-run trends in commodity prices. The results indicate that the real prices for many commodities have fallen, suggesting to the surprise of many that resource scarcity is declining over time. Almost all of this work, however, uses the US producer price index or other standard price deflators, which recent research shows overestimate inflation for several reasons. This article examines copper prices with adjusted deflators designed to eliminate this bias, It finds that the trend over time, which is significantly downward when no adjustment is made to the deflator, displays no tendency in either direction or is significantly upward depending on the magnitude of the deflator adjustment employed. These findings suggest that real resource prices provide less support than widely assumed for the hypothesis that resources are becoming more available or less scarce over time. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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    The resource curse
    (WILEY-BLACKWELL, 2005) Davis, GA; Tilton, JE
    Countries that possess rich mineral deposits, it is widely assumed, are fortunate. Such deposits are assets, part of a country's natural capital. Mining is the key that converts dormant mineral wealth into schools, homes, ports, and other forms of capital that directly contribute to economic development. Over the past two decades, however, a more negative view of mining has emerged that questions the positive relationship between mineral extraction and economic development. The impetus for the alternative view came from empirical studies suggesting that countries where mining is important have not grown as rapidly as other countries. More recent studies have explored the possible reasons behind the disappointing performance of many mineral producing countries. While the central point of contention between the conventional and alternative views - namely, whether or not mining usually promotes economic development - remains unresolved, there is widespread agreement that rich mineral deposits provide developing countries with opportunities, which in some instances have been used wisely to promote development, and in other instances have been misused, hurting development. The consensus on this issue is important, for it means that one uniform policy toward all mining in the developing world is not desirable, despite the recent suggestions by some to the contrary. The appropriate public policy question is not should we or should we not promote mining in the developing countries, but rather where should we encourage it and how can we ensure that it contributes as much as possible to economic development and poverty alleviation.