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Assoc Prof Malcolm Abbott

Head of Academic Group Accounting, Finance and Law
Associate Professor Economics

Malcolm Abbott is an economist by profession whose main areas of work in the past have been in the development of energy markets, telecommunications and the regulation of pricing and access. He also worked in other areas of government policy including seaports, airports, dairy industry deregulation, and reform of the stevedoring industry. As part of this work he has been employed by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, the Victorian Cabinet and as a consultant advisor to the governments of New Zealand, Victoria , Israel and Singapore, as well as for a number of private companies.

Malcolm has also worked on education policy, most notably serving as a member of the New Zealand Government's Teaching and Learning Forum which advised the Minster for Tertiary Education on the establishment of the Ako Aotearoa National Centre for Tertiary Teaching Excellence. In addition he led a team that developed professional development resources for tertiary education teachers in New Zealand and was the Director of the Centre for Research in International Education in based in Auckland in New Zealand.

As an academic Malcolm has taught a range of economics related units at universities in Australia, New Zealand and China.

Qualifications:

BEc (LaTrobe), MEc (LaTrobe), PhD (Melbourne).

Professional Associations:

  • Economic Society of Australia
  • New Zealand Association of Economics

Research Areas of Interest & Activities:

  • Network Economics and Utility Regulation
  • Economics of Education
  • Competition and Regulatory Policy
  • Productivity and Efficiency Analysis
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Publications:

Books And Book Chapters:

  • New Zealand and the global economy: external economic relations and trade policy, Dunmore Press, Wellington, 2007.
  • 'Bank regulation in Australia' in Current state of economic science, ed. Shri Bhagwan Dahiya, Tinbergen Institute of Economic Development Planning, Vol. 3, Part 7, 1999 (with Di Thomson).
  • 'Iron and steel' entry to the Oxford companion of Australian history, eds. S. McIntyre, G. Davison, Oxford University Press, 1998.

Journal Articles:

  • 'An economic evaluation of the Australian Postal Corporation Act 1989', Economic papers; economic society of Australia, vol. 19(3), pp. 1-15, 2000. '
  • 'Market power and the problem of security of supply in the National Electricity Market', Economic papers: Economic society of Australia, vol. 20(3), pp. 1-14, 2001.
  • 'Is the security of electricity supply a public good?', The electricity journal, pp. 31-33, August/September, 2001.
  • 'The restructuring of Australian railways: the case of the Tasmanian railways', Australian economic history review, vol. 41(2), pp. 198-212, 2001.
  • 'Total factor productivity and efficiency of Australian airports', Australian economic review, vol. 35(3), pp. 1-17, 2002 (with Su Wu).
  • 'Completing the introduction of competition into the Australian electricity industry', Economic papers: Economic society of Australia, vol. 21(2), pp. 1-14, 2002.
  • 'The power to direct in wholesale electricity markets', The electricity journal, pp. 1-6, April 2002.
  • 'Determining levels of productivity and efficiency in the electricity industry', The electricity journal vol. 18(9), pp. 62-74, 2005.
  • 'The productivity and efficiency of the Australian electricity supply industry' , Energy economics vol. 28(4), pp.444-454, 2006.
  • 'The performance of an electricity utility: the case of the State Electricity Commission of Victoria, 1925-93' Australian economic history review vol. 46(1), pp. 23-43, 2006.
  • 'Scorecard on Australia's electricity market reforms'. World power 2007, (with Graham Holdaway and Anthony Cohen).
  • 'Electricity reform and gains from the reallocation of resources', The electricity journal vol. 20(7), pp. 72-77.
  • 'A history of Victorian co-operative housing societies, 1944-1996', Urban policy and research vol. 15(1), pp. 19-30, 1997 (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'The life and death of the Australian permanent building societies', Journal of accounting and finance history ( now Accounting, business and financial history), vol. 8(1), pp. 73-103, 1998, (with Di Thomson).
  • 'Development, housing construction and co-operative housing societies: the case of Victoria Australia', Australian economic history review , vol. 39(2), pp. 114-132, 1999.
  • 'Is there a future for mutual deposit taking institutions in Australia ?', Economic papers : economic society of Australia, vol. 18(2), pp. 1-18, June 1999 (with Di Thomson).
  • 'Community banking: a new type of deposit taking institution in Australia', Agenda: a journal of policy analysis and reform vol. 7(3), pp. 207-218, 2000 (with Di Thomson).
  • 'Australian financial prudential supervision: an historical view', Australian journal of public administration, vol. 59(2), pp. pp. 75-88, 2000, (with Di Thomson).
  • 'The rise and decline of the New South Wales co-operative housing societies', Urban policy and research, vol. 19 (2) 2001, (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'Bank regulation and market forces', International review of financial analysis vol. 10(1), pp. 1-18, 2001 (with Di Thomson).
  • 'Do higher education amalgamations work? The case of Victoria College' , Agenda: a journal of policy analysis and reform, vol. 3(1), pp. 93-104, 1996.
  • 'Victoria College and the changing nature of advanced education', Forum of education vol. 51(2), pp. 74-85, 1996.
  • 'Amalgamations and the changing cost of Victorian colleges of advanced education during the 1970s and 1980s', Higher education research and development, vol. 15(2), pp. 133-144, 1996.
  • 'Economies of scale and the amalgamation of technical and further education institutions in Victoria', Australian and New Zealand journal of vocational education research, vol. 7(1), pp. 1-24, 1999.
  • 'A history of the Burwood Teachers' College', Education research and perspectives vol. 24(2), pp. 73-87, 1997.
  • 'The course and development of vocational education and training in New Zealand.' Education research and perspectives vol. 27(1), pp. 90-108, June 2000.
  • Economies of size in vocational education and training institutions: the case of the New Zealand polytechnics.' New Zealand economic papers vol. 34(1 ), pp. 1-24 , 2000, (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'Amalgamations and the efficiency of Queensland TAFE Institutes', Australian and New Zealand journal of vocational education research vol. 8(2), pp. 1-20, 2000, (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'Interrelated factor demand in Queensland TAFE institutions', Journal of economic and social policy vol. 5(1), pp. 41-56, 2001 (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'Total factor productivity and efficiency in Australian colleges of advanced education', Journal of educational administration vol. 39(4), pp. 384-393, 2001 (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'A DEA analysis of the efficiency of Victorian technical and further education institutes'. Australian economic review vol. 35(1), pp. 55-69, 2002 (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'Economies of scale: TAFE mergers in Australia', Learning and skills research journal vol. 5(2), p. 43, 2002 (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'The efficiency of Australian universities: a non-parametric analysis.' Economics of education review, vol. 22, 2003, pp. 89-97 (with Hristos Doucouliagos).
  • 'Research output of Australian universities', Education economics, vol. 12(3) 2004. (with Hristos Doucouliagos).
  • ' The cost efficiency of New Zealand's polytechnics', International journal of training research, vol. 1(2). pp. 1-10, 2004 (with Hristos Doucouliagos).
  • 'Regulation of tertiary education', Agenda: a journal of policy analysis and reform vol. 11(3), 2004.
  • 'The impact of regulatory competition on the investment of Australian universities in New Zealand', Economic papers vol. 24(2), pp.133-144, 2005.
  • Private higher education penetration into a mature education market: the New Zealand experience, Working Paper No. 6, PROPHE Research Centre, State University of New York, Albany NY , July 2005.
  • Strategic directions in New Zealand's tertiary education market', International journal of training research vol. 2, 2005.
  • The challenges of entering the international higher education market', International higher education, Winter 2007, vol. 46, (with Ma Xiaoying)
  • 'The Labor Party and the proposal to nationalise the iron and steel industry' Labour history vol. 70, pp. 115-130, 1996.
  • The politics of tariff formation: the case of the iron and steel industry', Journal of Australian studies, vol. 54/55, pp. 150-161, 1997.
  • 'The closure of a steelworks and the limits to workplace reform: the case of BHP's Newcastle works in Australia', Industry and innovation, vol. 4(2), pp. 259-275, 1997.
  • 'Closing down steel works', Journal of Australian studies, vol. 61, pp. 169-177, 1999.
  • 'The industrial tribunals and wage determination in the Australian iron and steel industry, 1921-38', Australian economic history review, vol. 40(3), pp. 239-262, 2000.
  • 'The real structural imbalance and the fiscal stance in New Zealand during the inter-war years', New Zealand economic papers, vol. 29(1), pp. 63-76, 1995.
  • 'The real structural imbalance and fiscal stance in Australia during the post-war era', Australian economic review vol. 29(4), pp. 385-398, 1996.
  • 'The real structural imbalance and fiscal stance in Australia during the inter-war years', Australian economic history review, vol. 37(1), pp. 67-79, 1997.
  • 'An analysis of the fiscal stance of the New Zealand Government and its impact on short-term fluctuations in the business cycle', Journal of economic and social policy vol. 6(1), pp. 1-17 2001, (with Akhter Ahmed).
  • Promoting wool internationally; the origins of the International Wool Secretariat', Australian economic history review, vol. 38(3), pp. 258-279, 1998.
  • 'The end of sixty years of international wool promotion', Choices: the magazine of food, farm and resource issues, vol. 14(2), pp. 26-27, 1999.
  • 'United Kingdom–Australian/New Zealand trade relations', Economic papers, vol. 25(4), pp. 314 - 330, 2006.

Seminar and Conference Papers:

  • 'Public intervention and the Australian iron and steel industry', University of Melbourne, June 1990.
  • Strategic trade policy and Australian steel', Deakin University, 12 August 1994.
  • 'The cost efficiency and economies of size of co-operative housing societies in New South Wales', 26th Annual Conference of Economists, 1 October 1997, University of Tasmania, Hobart, (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'Irreversible investment and price regulation', Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Gas Regulation Workshop, 21 April 1998.
  • 'Efficiency, productivity and returns to scale in Australian TAFE and New Zealand Polytechnics', Centre for the Economics of Education and Training, Monash University - ACER, 25 June 1998, (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'Productivity and efficiency measurement of public utilities', Utility Regulators Forum, Sydney, 17 November 1999.
  • 'Efficient infrastructure access pricing in the Australian context', Dept. of Economics and Finance, RMIT University, Melbourne, 12 May 2000.
  • 'Administration of state-owned companies: the case of Australia's oldest', United Education and Culture Exchange Centre, Deakin University, 20 November 2000.
  • 'Banking regulation and market forces in Australia' Paper presented at the 13th Australasian Banking and Finance Conference, Sydney, NSW., 2000. (with D. Thomson).
  • 'Mutual to stock conversions: the experience of Australia's major building societies (1983-1994), 9th World Congress of Accounting Historians, Melbourne, 11 August 2002 (with Di Thomason).
  • 'The impact of international competition on the efficiency level of tertiary institutions', The Internationalisation of Education in New Zealand, Centre for Research in International Education, Conference 12-15 August 2004, Auckland, New Zealand (with Hristos Doucouliagos).
  • 'Productivity and efficiency measurement in the electricity industry', Bangkok International Conference on Applied Business Research December 1-3, 2004, Bangkok Thailand.
  • 'Reflecting on the achievement of quality assurance in higher education through formal regulatory intervention', Centre for Research in International Education, Conference 12-23 June 2005, Auckland , New Zealand.
  • 'The influence of exchange rate variations on the destinations of international students', Beijing International Conference on Applied Business Research December 2005, UIBE, Beijing. 1-3 December 2005.
  • A long-term look at the development and reform of New Zealand's electricity supply industry', Asia-Pacific Economic and Business History Conference, 13-15 February 2008, Trinity College, University of Melbourne.

Working papers:

  • 'Tariff protection and the Australian steel industry', Deakin University , School of Economics , Working Paper Series No. 9510, December 1995.
  • 'The politics of tariff formation: the case of the Australian iron and steel industry', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series No.9509, December 1995.
  • 'The real structural imbalance and fiscal stance in Australia during the inter-war years', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series No. 9512, December 1995.
  • 'The life and death of the Australian permanent building societies',(with Di Thomson) Deakin University, School of Economics Working Paper Series No. 9603, May 1996.
  • 'South African/Australian Trade Relations: A History', Deakin University, School of Economics Working Paper Series No. 9601, April 1996.
  • 'A history of the co-operative housing societies in Victoria, 1944-1996', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series No 9702, January 1997.
  • The interrelation of the Australian, New Zealand and South African wool reserve price schemes', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series No 9703, January 1997.
  • 'Protection of the galvanised sheet industry in Australia, 1920-1940', Deakin University, Working Paper Series No 9704, January 1997.
  • 'Strategic trade and the Australian steel industry', Deakin University , School of Economics Working Paper Series, No.9705, January 1997.
  • 'Amalgamations and the changing cost of Victorian colleges of advanced education during the 1970s and 1980s', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series, No. 9706, January 1997.
  • 'Development, housing construction and co-operative housing societies: the case of Victoria, Australia', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series No. 9721, July 1997 (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'Promoting wool internationally: the origins of the International Wool Secretariat', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series No. 9723, December 1997.
  • 'Economies of size in Victorian vocational education and training institutions', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series No. 9722, December 1997 (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'Inter-related factor demand in Queensland TAFE Institutes', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper, Series No. 9724, December 1997 (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'A DEA analysis of the efficiency of Victorian technical and further education institutes', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series No. 9802, January 1998 (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'Is there a future for mutual deposit taking institutions in Australia ?', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series No. 9817, November 1998 (with Di Thomson).
  • Australian financial prudential supervision: an historical view', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series No. 9818, November 1998, (with Di Thomson).
  • 'Technical and scale efficiency of vocational education and training institutions: The case of New Zealand's polytechnics', Research Working Paper No 22, Centre for the Economics of Education and Training, Monash University, 1999 (with Chris Doucouliagos).
  • 'Research output of Australian universities', Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series No 200304, 2003 (with Hristos Doucoulagos).
  • The changing structure of higher education in Australia 1949-2003, Deakin University, School of Economics, Working Paper Series No. 200307, 2003 (with Hristos Doucouliagos).
  • 'A long run appraisal of the economics of government provided tertiary education and training in New Zealand', Centre for Research in International Education, Auckland, New Zealand, Occasional Paper 2, February 2004 (with Hristos Doucouliagos).
  • 'Commercial risks and opportunities in the New Zealand tertiary education sector Centre for Research in International Education, Auckland, New Zealand, Working Paper 3, June 2004.
  • Competition and efficiency: overseas students and technical efficiency in Australian and New Zealand universities', Working Paper No. 9, Centre for Research in International Education, Auckland New Zealand , November 2004.
  • Regulatory competition and investment of Australian universities in New Zealand export education', Working Paper No. 6, Centre for Research in International Education, Auckland New Zealand, October 2004.
  • 'An economic analysis of the formal regulation of higher education', Occasional paper No. 6, Centre for Research in International Education, Auckland New Zealand, July 2005.
  • 'The impact of exchange rate variations and university reputation on the choice of destinations of international students', Working Paper No. 13, Centre for Research in International Education, Auckland, New Zealand, August 2005.
  • 'Chinese students and the higher education market in Australia and New Zealand.' Occasional Paper No. 7, Centre for Research in International Education, Auckland , New Zealand, November 2006 (with Ma Xiaoying) .
  • 'Competition and efficiency: overseas students and technical efficiency in Australian and New Zealand universities', School of Accounting, Economics and Finance, Deakin University, School Working Paper - Economic Series 2007 SWP 2007/09 (with Chris (Hristos) Doucouliagos).
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Malcolm Abbott


Office LA231
LA Building
Lilydale Campus

TEL: 6 13 9215 7314
FAX: 6 13 9215 7070

Internal Mail No. L23

mabbott@swin.edu.au