R&D behavior of German manufacturing companies during the 2008/09 recession

Arbeitspapier

This paper investigates to what extent the R&D behavior of manufacturing companies was influenced by the 2008/09 crisis. Based on a broad official data set for German manufacturing companies, only a few companies that engaged in R&D during 2008 gave it up in the following year. Some companies even started R&D during crisis. R&D expenditures declined in 2009 compared to 2008, but expanded in 2010. The development of R&D expenditures was less volatile than sales. Probit analyses show that the occurrence of R&D in 2009 is very much determined by engagement in R&D in 2008 and that changes in demand are not relevant. However, fluctuation in demand proved to be relevant in the regressions computed where the intensity of R&D expenditures was the dependent variable. This result suggests that companies reacted counter cyclically in 2008/09, i.e. the reduction in R&D was smaller than the decline in demand, or the expansion of R&D expenditures was greater than the change in demand. Similar regressions for using R&D staff as the dependent variable did not find any influence of changes in demand. The results suggest that companies see R&D as a longer term task necessary to retain competitiveness.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: DIW Discussion Papers ; No. 1357

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Business Fluctuations; Cycles ; Industry Studies: Manufacturing: General ; Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives
• Subject: Research and development ; Business cycle ; Manufacturing

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Eickelpasch, Alexander
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Deutsches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung (DIW)
• (where): Berlin
• (when): 2014

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/92307
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:44 AM CET