Patents, firm size and financial constraints: an empirical analysis for a panel of Italian manufacturing firms
利用804家意大利制造业企业1995-2000年的面板数据，发现只有融资约束较低的企业才能持续申请专利，表明意大利资本市场不完善，尤其导致中型企业延迟内部研发。
The paper empirically investigates the issue of financial constraints to investment, focusing on its relationship with innovation activities. The study is based on the analysis of a cross-industries panel of 804 Italian companies, observed through the years 1995--2000. The main objective of the study is to highlight whether there are financial determinants underlying the strong bias of patenting activity towards larger companies in the Italian economy. By applying a dynamic panel analysis, we found that only the firms showing lower financial constraints are able to keep a sustained patenting profile through time. Our evidence suggests the existence of an imperfect capital market in the Italian economy, particularly in the case of medium-sized companies, which tend to delay inefficiently the start of in-house R&D activities. Copyright 2007, Oxford University Press.