Robustpf: A command for robust estimation of production functions

Abstract

We introduce a new command, robustpf, to estimate parameters of Cobb–Douglas production functions. The command is robust against two potential problems. First, it is robust against optimization errors in firms’ input choice, unobserved idiosyncratic cost shocks, and measurement errors in proxy variables. In particular, the command relaxes the conventional assumption of scalar unobservables. Second, it is also robust against the functional dependence problem of static input choice, which is known today as a cause of identification failure. The main method is proposed by Hu, Huang, and Sasaki (2020, Journal of Econometrics 215: 375–398).