Analysing total factor productivity through a bootstrap-based nonparametric approach: the case of italian regions

This paper analyzes the Total Factor Productivity (TFP) growth of the Italian regions over the period 1980-2001. Malmquist Productivity Index (MPI) and its components (namely Efficiency Change –EffCh- and Technical Change -TechCh) as well as confidence intervals have been estimated by applying the procedure proposed by Simar and Wilson (1999). Including human capital among inputs, we estimated an overall biascorrected productivity gain of 2.1 percent, an efficiency gain of 0.5 and a technical gain of 1.6 percent. The bootstrap analysis revealed that for most Italian regions efficiency and technical changes did not show a statistically significant change