Innovation, research and development, and firm profitability in Taiwan: Causality and determinants

Chia-Hui Huang and Tony Chieh-Tse Hou ()

International Review of Economics & Finance, 2019, vol. 59, issue C, 385-394

Abstract: Using data from Taiwanese manufacturing firms for the 2000–2015 period, the results of the system-generalised method of moments revealed the direction of causality from a firm's innovative activities to firm profitability. This study also revealed that the profitability of innovative firms surpassed that of noninnovative firms by employing propensity score matching. We further observed a short-term profit-enhancing effect of a firm obtaining a patent after controlling for firm heterogeneity and the endogeneity problem. Our results indicate that firms that invested in research and development successfully obtained patents, and the protection granted by government-issued patents improved their profitability. These findings have strong policy-related implications; innovation policymakers in the government should ensure a favourable industrial environment that focuses on giving firms incentives to improve performance.

Keywords: Innovation; Research and development; Patent; Profitability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: G32 L25 O32 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (8)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:reveco:v:59:y:2019:i:c:p:385-394

DOI: 10.1016/j.iref.2018.10.004

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