1st of 4 parts: Auction models and estimation
 
This is the 1st of 4 parts of the course “Topics in Industrial Organisation”. This part covers the topic of theory, estimation and applications of auction models. Some theory background will be discussed, based on Krishna (2010). A basic discussion of estimation strategies will start with Paarsch and Hong (2006). Afterwards, several empirical applications will be discussed.

2nd of 4 parts: Structural estimation of production functions

This part of the course deals with recent developments in the estimation of firm-level productivity. Based on assumptions about firm behaviour and timing, these techniques solve the endogeneity issues involved in relating firm input and outputs. The resulting productivity estimates can be used to calculate markups, returns to scale, export premia and other quantities of interest. The productivity estimates are also useful for policy analysis and have been employed in the evaluation of trade reforms, infrastructure projects, foreign direct investment and many other contexts.
 
Lecture 1: Preliminaries & Methodology
Lecture 2: Extensions
Lecture 3: Applications and Case Studies

3rd of 4 parts:

The third part of this lecture “Topics in IO” will focus on firms’ pricing behaviour. More specifically, we investigate the impact of (spatial) market structure as well as consumer information (about prices and product attributes) on prices and the distribution of prices in equilibrium. Based on theoretical models, the course will discuss empirical estimation strategies and review recent empirical applications.

4th of 4 parts: Estimation of models of entry and market structure
 
The last part of the course deals with the estimation of models of entry and market structure. The first session of this block focuses on the estimation of static models of free entry and how these can be used to uncover unobservable economic quantities. Different approaches to dealing with the potential for multiple equilibria are discussed in the context of empirical applications. The second lecture looks at models of restricted entry. In particular, empirical estimation of entry under regulation and/or joint profit maximization will be discussed. In the final session of the course, dynamic models of firm entry are presented, with a focus on the computational challenges.

Participants become familiar with the relevant literature on four important and broad topics in empirical industrial organization: auctions, productivity, pricing and entry/exit. They gain insight into a set of fundamental econometric techniques to estimate theory-guided models of firm behavior. After the course, participants are able to understand the cornerstones of structural models of industry structure and competition, select feasible econometric techniques, test hypothesis and perform policy analysis. These skills are useful for starting and promoting own empirical research projects in IO and other fields, and have important applications in dealing with questions on competition and industrial policy.

Lectures, discussions, and review of research articles.

For each of the four parts, students have to write a referee report on an article. Each report contributes to the final grade with 25%. Articles and due dates for the reports will be provided later in the course.