法国制造业的竞争力和对外贸易表现外文翻译.doc

外文翻译 Competitiveness and External Trade Performance of the French Manufacturing Industry Material Source: /content/lt9170358591h817/ Author: Pierre·Richard The concept of competitiveness continues to be the subject of much debate in industrial countries, in large part because of its perceived importance in determining activity in the tradable goods sector and the overall performance of the economy. Krugman(1994), in particular, has argued forcefully that the notion of competitiveness has been used incorrectly in discussions of economic problems that are primarily due to domestic factors. It is well recognized that the concept of competitiveness encompasses a large variety of factors in addition to changes in nominal exchange rates, relative prices and production costs. Product differentiation, for instance, plays an important role in the competitive strategies of enterprises. Productivity growth, reliability, delivery times, quality, after-sales service, financing arrangements, technological innovation, investment in physical and human capital, and the institutional and structural environment are all factors that need to be taken into account in assessing the competitiveness of a particular country. However, because many of these factors are qualitative in nature – such as product quality and enterprise management style – investigators have often focused on more easily quantifiable indicators, such as those based on export unit values and unit labor costs. This paper assesses developments in the international competitiveness of the French manufacturing industry during the 1980s and early 1990s. It also provides a quantitative evaluation of the role of price and nonprice competitiveness (together with demand factors) on the external performance of the French manufacturing sector. Section II analyzes the evolution of a broad range of indicators of competitiveness of the manufacturing sector: cost-based indicators (aggregate as well as bilateral indices, relative to Fr