Interactions between regional public and private investment: evidence from Japanese prefectures

This study examines the effects of government investment on private capital formation, considering both regional and sectoral distinctions in Japan. The empirical results show that a crowding-out effect is observed in rural areas for several industries that contribute to regional economic growth. This suggests that the allocation of public stimulus investment packages to stagnant regions in Japan might act as a regional growth constraint as well as an obstacle to the capital formation, and stagnant regions cannot evade the stagnation even if the central government plans economic stimuli toward such regions, including public investment.