{
  "title": "Productivity Drag from Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Japan",
  "publication": "IMF Working Papers, July 1, 2019",
  "sourceUrl": "https://www.imf.org/en/publications/wp/issues/2019/07/01/productivity-drag-from-small-and-medium-sized-enterprises-in-japan-46951",
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  "summary": "Productivity growth in Japan, as in most advanced economies, has moderated. This paper finds supportive evidence for the important role of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in explaining Japan’s modest productivity growth.",
  "sections": [
    {
      "heading": "Summary",
      "content": "- Productivity growth in Japan, as in most advanced economies, has moderated.\n- The paper finds supportive evidence for the important role of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in explaining Japan’s modest productivity growth.\n- Results show a substantial dispersion in firm-level productivity growth across sectors and even across firms within the same sector.\n- SMEs, on average, exhibit lower productivity growth than non-SMEs in Japan, with smaller and older SMEs showing particularly low productivity growth."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Key findings and quantitative estimate",
      "content": "- Substantial dispersion in firm-level productivity growth across sectors and within sectors.\n- SMEs exhibit lower productivity growth than non-SMEs on average.\n- Smaller SMEs show particularly low productivity growth.\n- Older SMEs show particularly low productivity growth.\n- Estimates suggest that boosting productivity growth in all of the worst-performing SMEs could improve overall productivity growth by up to 1.8 percentage points."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Identified contributors to slow SME productivity growth",
      "content": "- The SME credit guarantee system.\n- SME financing constraints.\n- Demographic factors.\n- Lack of intangible capital investment."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Subject and keywords (as presented)",
      "content": "- Subject: Economic sectors, Intangible capital, Labor productivity, National accounts, Production, Productivity, Small and medium enterprises\n- Keywords: exit rate, financing constraint, firm, Firm Dynamics, Global, Intangible capital, Intangible Investment, Labor productivity, laggard SME, Productivity, productivity growth, sluggish SME productivity growth, Small and medium enterprises, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, SME, SME business manager succession, SME characteristic, SME credit guarantee program, SME credit guarantee system, SME firm, SME guarantee, SMEs Labor Productivity Growth, WP\n\nMariana Colacelli, and Gee Hee Hong. \"Productivity Drag from Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Japan\", IMF Working Papers 2019, 137 (2019), accessed 9/17/2026, https://doi.org/10.5089/9781498317474.001\n\n---\n\n Content in this bundle\n\n- Working Paper\n  - Working Paper (Markdown version){rel=\"alternate\" type=\"text/markdown\"}\n  - Working Paper (PDF){rel=\"external\" type=\"application/pdf\"}\n\n---\n\nSource: https://www.imf.org/en/publications/wp/issues/2019/07/01/productivity-drag-from-small-and-medium-sized-enterprises-in-japan-46951"
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    "Authors: Mariana Colacelli, Gee Hee Hong",
    "Published: July 1, 2019",
    "Series: IMF Working Papers",
    "DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9781498317474.001",
    "Productivity growth in Japan, as in most advanced economies, has moderated.",
    "The paper finds supportive evidence for the important role of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in explaining Japan’s modest productivity growth.",
    "Results show a substantial dispersion in firm-level productivity growth across sectors and even across firms within the same sector.",
    "SMEs, on average, exhibit lower productivity growth than non-SMEs in Japan, with smaller and older SMEs showing particularly low productivity growth.",
    "Substantial dispersion in firm-level productivity growth across sectors and within sectors.",
    "SMEs exhibit lower productivity growth than non-SMEs on average.",
    "Smaller SMEs show particularly low productivity growth.",
    "Older SMEs show particularly low productivity growth.",
    "Estimates suggest that boosting productivity growth in all of the worst-performing SMEs could improve overall productivity growth by up to 1.8 percentage points.",
    "The SME credit guarantee system.",
    "SME financing constraints.",
    "Demographic factors.",
    "Lack of intangible capital investment.",
    "Subject: Economic sectors, Intangible capital, Labor productivity, National accounts, Production, Productivity, Small and medium enterprises",
    "Keywords: exit rate, financing constraint, firm, Firm Dynamics, Global, Intangible capital, Intangible Investment, Labor productivity, laggard SME, Productivity, productivity growth, sluggish SME productivity growth, Small and medium enterprises, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, SME, SME business manager succession, SME characteristic, SME credit guarantee program, SME credit guarantee system, SME firm, SME guarantee, SMEs Labor Productivity Growth, WP",
    "**Working Paper**"
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