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Efficiency and productivity in the Thai non-life insurance industry

Author

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  • Saowaros Yaisawarng
  • Preecha Asavadachanukorn
  • Suthathip Yaisawarng

Abstract

This paper estimates a stochastic cost frontier for a sample of the non-life insurance industry in Thailand from 2000 to 2007. Our model explicitly considers the heteroscedasticity in the variances of the noise and inefficiency components that could affect the position of the cost frontier as well as the measurement of efficiency. Tests for double heteroscedasticity and appropriate specification for the cost frontier are performed. The chosen model is used to examine whether economies of scale and a change in technology exist. In addition, this paper calculates total factor productivity (TFP) change and decomposes it into scale effect, cost efficiency effect, technology effect, output effect, price effect, and environmental effect. Our results reveal that, on average, Thai non-life insurance firms are between 74 and 79 % efficient, that economies of scale exist, and that regress in technology shifts the cost frontier upward by 2.2 %. The regress in technology is the dominant contributor to a negative TFP growth of 1.15 %. The restructuring of the industry following the 1997 Asian financial crisis finally paid off when the industry experienced technology progress in 2005 and beyond. Between 2005 and 2007, technology progress and productivity growth occurred at a little over 2 % a year. In-depth analysis of the most and the least efficient firms reveals that most efficient firms tend to strategically select types of insurance services and underwrite average and small size sum insured per policy to diversify their risks. In addition, they tend to be savvy investors. The opposite holds for the least efficient firms which concentrate in providing labor-intensive, small sum automobile insurance policies or underwrite large coverage policies for fewer policyholders. Balancing the mix of insurance types, spreading risk across insurance types or across number of policyholders, investing in high yield assets, or developing a market niche may prove beneficial for improving cost efficiency. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2014

Suggested Citation

  • Saowaros Yaisawarng & Preecha Asavadachanukorn & Suthathip Yaisawarng, 2014. "Efficiency and productivity in the Thai non-life insurance industry," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 41(2), pages 291-306, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jproda:v:41:y:2014:i:2:p:291-306
    DOI: 10.1007/s11123-012-0317-8
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    Cited by:

    1. Tone, Kaoru & Kweh, Qian Long & Lu, Wen-Min & Ting, Irene Wei Kiong, 2019. "Modeling investments in the dynamic network performance of insurance companies," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 237-247.
    2. Suarez-Fernandez, Sara & Quiroga-Garcia, Raquel & Manzano-Perez, Isabel, 2021. "A Comparison of DEA and SFA Approaches: Application to the US Non-Life Insurance Market," Asian Journal of Applied Economics/ Applied Economics Journal, Kasetsart University, Faculty of Economics, Center for Applied Economic Research, vol. 28(2), pages 107-127, December.
    3. Dipanwita Sarkar & Trevor C. Collier, 2019. "Does host-country education mitigate immigrant inefficiency? Evidence from earnings of Australian university graduates," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 56(1), pages 81-106, January.
    4. Suárez-Fernández, Sara & Quiroga-Garcia, Raquel & Manzano-Perez, Isabel, 2021. "A Comparison of DEA and SFA Approaches: Application to the US Non-Life Insurance Market," Asian Journal of Applied Economics, Kasetsart University, Center for Applied Economics Research, vol. 28(2).
    5. Ana María Reyna & Hugo J. Fuentes, 2018. "A cost efficiency analysis of the insurance industry in Mexico," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 49(1), pages 49-64, February.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Non-life insurance; Cost efficiency; Double heteroscedasticity; Decomposition of total factor productivity index; Analysis of individual firms; D24; G2;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D24 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Production; Cost; Capital; Capital, Total Factor, and Multifactor Productivity; Capacity
    • G2 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services

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