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Distribution Costs
Author:
Alessandra Peter
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Series:
IMF Working Papers
Volume/Issue:
Volume 2022: Issue 007
Language:
English
Publication Date:
14 Jan 2022
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5089/9781616355036.001
ISBN:
9781616355036
ISSN:
1018-5941
Pages:
40
Keywords:
Distribution; transportation costs; aggregate productivity; welfare loss; distribution sector; distribution share; share of sales; distribution expense; Manufacturing; Productivity; Total factor productivity; Consumption; Labor costs
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IMF Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit comments and to encourage debate. The views expressed in IMF Working Papers are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF, its Executive Board, or IMF management.
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We provide the first direct estimates of distribution expenses incurred by manufacturing plants and assess their importance for aggregate output. Using a novel measure from the Indian Annual Survey of Industries, we document three key facts: (1) distribution expenses are large – they amount to over half of labor costs; (2) plants in the largest decile – relative to the smallest – spend over three times as much on distribution as a share of sales; and (3) between 2000 and 2010, distribution costs as a share of sales declined by one third. We develop a model of heterogeneous manufacturing firms that rely on the distribution sector to sell their goods across space. We quantify the model using the facts on size and systematic heterogeneity in distribution shares as well as newly constructed estimates of intranational trade. Accounting for firm heterogeneity in distribution requirements is important: welfare losses from low TFP in the distribution sector are amplified 1.5-fold. From 2000 to 2010, India saw an increase in intranational trade hand in hand with a decrease in the distribution share. In combination with the model, these trends suggest largescale decreases in both variable and fixed costs of distribution, leading to welfare gains of 58% over this ten year period.
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Cover IMF Working Papers
IMF Working Papers
ISSN:
1018-5941
Publisher:
International Monetary Fund