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on Central and Western Asia |
| By: | Lehmann, Hartmut (University of Bologna); Zaiceva, Anzelika (University of Modena and Reggio Emilia) |
| Abstract: | Informal activities impact countries' economic development and overall growth. However, studying informal employment is not easy and it is crucial to provide a valid definition of it. This paper contributes to the recent discussion of the measures of informality by taking advantage of a rich dataset on Russia over the period 2003 - 2011, that is before and after the economic downturn, together with a special supplement on informality that allows to construct different measures of informal employment and to analyze its determinants. We demonstrate that the incidence of informal employment varies across the different definitions. However, the determinants of informal employment are roughly stable across the different measures as long as we exclude firm size as a criterion. We also show that risk-averse individuals, as expected, are less likely to select themselves into informal employment. |
| Keywords: | informal employment, definitions, incidence, determinants, Russia |
| JEL: | J31 J40 P23 |
| Date: | 2013–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp7844&r=cwa |
| By: | Arman Mazhikeyev (Loughborough University); T.Huw Edwards (Loughborough University); Marian Rizov (Middlesex University) |
| Abstract: | Previous studies characterize some of the Former Soviet Central Asian countries (CACs) as “more open” (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan) and others as “more isolated” (Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) depending on their trade-over-GDP level. Being an open or isolationist economy has resulted respectively in more or less suitable environment for business and investment. We investigate this by measuring contributions of country-specific properties and networking factors in 185 bilateral CACs trade flows over the period 1995-2011. We find that, even though all CACs’ trade has increased greatly since 1995, for the more open economies (Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan) trade changes are mainly explained by networking (bilateral) factors while for isolationist economies (Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan) changes in trade are mostly explained by country-specific properties. |
| Keywords: | Trade performance, gravity models, transition, Central Asia, FSU |
| JEL: | F14 F15 |
| Date: | 2014–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lbo:lbowps:2014_02&r=cwa |
| By: | Konstantin Gluschenko |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the behavior of the entire distribution of consumer prices across Russian regions over the decade of 2001–2010. The analysis uses non-parametric techniques, exploiting the distribution dynamics approach. The results obtained evidence that regional relative prices in Russia remained fairly stable during 2001-2010. No significant changes are found in price dispersion and cross-region price distribution over this time span. Rank mobility was very low with seasonal surges. The pattern of quantity mobility manifests neither convergence nor divergence of regional prices. However, a long-run price distribution has an unpleasant feature, predicting potential emergence of a price convergence club in the Russian Far East. |
| Keywords: | price convergence; price dispersion; price mobility; market integration; stochastic kernel |
| JEL: | P22 R10 R15 |
| Date: | 2013–10–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wdi:papers:2013-1061&r=cwa |
| By: | Najda-Janoszka, Marta |
| Abstract: | According to the open innovation model an effective strategy for increasing innovation and competitiveness of the region should be based on active and multilevel cooperation among operators of the local tourism business environment. It is commonly assumed that an exceptionally important role in creating a favorable environment for the cooperative practices in the region is performed by local authorities. Yet, a modest number of research findings presented in the literature indicate a rather high level of inertia of local authorities in creating appropriate conditions for tourism business development, thus putting in question the effectiveness of performed intermediary function in the process of knowledge transfer among tourist enterprises. Given the paucity of empirical evidence on effectiveness of innovation policy interventions at the regional level, this article presents the empirical findings regarding cooperation in innovation between tourist enterprises and local institutional agents. |
| Keywords: | tourism, innovation, cooperation, institutional environment, local government |
| JEL: | H70 L83 O31 |
| Date: | 2013–09–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:52991&r=cwa |
| By: | Gilles Dufrénot (DEFI - Centre de recherche en développement économique et finance internationale - Faculté des Sciences Economiques - Université de la Méditerranée - Aix-Marseille II, CEPII - Centre d'Etudes Prospectives et d'Informations Internationales - Centre d'analyse stratégique, Centre de recherche de la Banque de France - Banque de France); Adelya Ospanova (Aix-Marseille Université - Aix-Marseille Université); Alain Sand-Zantman (GATE Lyon Saint-Étienne - Groupe d'analyse et de théorie économique - CNRS : UMR5824 - Université Lumière - Lyon II - École Normale Supérieure (ENS) - Lyon - PRES Université de Lyon) |
| Abstract: | This paper presents a quarterly macro econometric model of the Kazakhstan. The main goal is to provide a stylized representation of the Kazakh economy in order to simulate the consequences of several economic policies viewed by the authorities as essential during the period of transition to a market economy. The policy simulation potential of the model is illustrated by five types of simulations : interest rate shocks, foreign direct investment shocks, world oil price shocks, foreign demand shocks and nominal wages shocks. These sets of simulations show the importance of foreign direct investments in terms of theirs global positive effect, as well as the demand effect of an increase in the wages. We also find that effect of the tight monetary policy in not ambiguous ; we argue that in some cases it is not the most efficient policy instrument to sustain the economy. |
| Keywords: | Transition economies; Kazakhstan; Macroeconomic stabilization; Central Asian CIS countries |
| Date: | 2014–01–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:wpaper:halshs-00926223&r=cwa |
| By: | Olessia Y. Koltsova (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Sergei N. Koltcov (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Sergey I. Nikolenko (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | We study the structure of online discussions in order to uncover latent communities of socially important debate. Our research reveals that discussion communities defined by mutual commenting in the Russian language blogosphere are centered mainly around blog authors as opinion leaders and, to a lesser extent, around a shared topic or topics. We have derived these conclusions from the dataset of 17386 full text posts written by top 2000 LiveJournal bloggers and over 520,000 comments that result in about 4.5 million edges in the network of co-commenting |
| Keywords: | Comment-based communities, online discussion, blogs, Russia |
| JEL: | Z19 |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:33/soc/2013&r=cwa |
| By: | Muravyev, Alexander (St. Petersburg University GSOM and IZA); Oshchepkov, Aleksey (Higher School of Economics, Moscow) |
| Abstract: | This paper revisits labor market effects of the minimum wage by taking advantage of a unique institutional setting and rich data from Russia that cover 89 regions over 10 years, from 2001 to 2010. Our empirical analysis draws on the methodology introduced by Neumark and Wascher, in which labor market outcomes at the regional level are related to the relative minimum wage (captured by the Kaitz index) in a panel setting. We find that the minimum wage raises unemployment among young workers aged 15 to 24. In contrast, there is no evidence of disemployment effects of the minimum wage for workers aged 25-72, including women. In addition, minimum wage hikes are associated with an increase in informal employment. |
| Keywords: | minimum wages, unemployment, informal employment, Russia |
| JEL: | J38 J23 |
| Date: | 2013–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp7878&r=cwa |
| By: | Morissette, Rene Chan, Winnie Lu, Yuqian |
| Abstract: | Canada's oil reserves are concentrated in three Canadian provinces: Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland and Labrador. Oil prices received by Canadian oil producers more than doubled between 2001 and 2008. The proportion of young men employed in the oil industry differs markedly across provinces and education levels. Taken together, these facts suggest that the increases in world oil prices observed between 2001 and 2008 may have induced cross-educational and cross-provincial variation in labour demand and male wage growth in Canada. Using data from the Canadian Labour Force Survey, this study exploits this variation in wage growth in order to estimate the elasticity of young men's labour market participation and school enrollment with respect to wages. |
| Keywords: | Education, training and learning, Labour, Students, Employment and unemployment, Educational attainment, Wages, salaries and other earnings |
| Date: | 2014–01–13 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:stc:stcp3e:2014353e&r=cwa |
| By: | Christoph Böhringer (University of Oldenburg, Department of Economics); Jared C. Carbone (Department of Economics, University Drive NW, Calgary, Canada,); Thomas F. Rutherford (University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA) |
| Abstract: | Unilateral carbon policies are inefficient due to the fact that they generally involve emission reductions in countries with high marginal abatement costs and because they are subject to carbon leakage. In this paper, we ask whether the use of carbon tariffs—tariffs on the carbon embodied in imported goods—might lower the cost of achieving a given reduction in world emissions. Specifically, we explore the role tariffs might play as an inducement to unregulated countries adopting emission controls of their own. We use an applied general equilibrium model to generate the payoffs of a policy game. In the game, a coalition of countries regulates its own emissions and chooses whether or not to employ carbon tariffs against unregulated countries. Unregulated countries may respond by adopting emission regulations of their own, retaliating against the carbon tariffs by engaging in a trade war, or by pursuing no policy at all. In the unique Nash equilibrium produced by this game, the use of carbon tariffs by coalition countries is credible. China and Russia respond by adopting binding abatement targets to avoid being subjected to them. Other unregulated countries retaliate. Cooperation by China and Russia lowers the global welfare cost of achieving a 10% reduction in global emissions by half relative to the case where coalition countries undertake all of this abatement on their own. |
| Date: | 2014–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:old:dpaper:360&r=cwa |
| By: | Köllner, Sebastian |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the impact of remittances on educational attainment in Tajikistan using the Tajikistan Living Standards Measurement Survey (TLSS) from 2007 and 2009. Applying an ordered probit framework and controlling for hetereoskedasticity, censoring, intra-family correlation, and different masures of remittances, we find a negative impact of receiving remittances on educational outcomes. Calculations of the marginal effects draw a more subtle picture indicating that remittances positively affect educational achievements as long as education is mandatory. For higher, non-mandatory levels of education, however, receiving remittances negatively influences educational attainment. These results support concerns regarding the wide-spread affirmative impact of remittances on human capital formation. Accounting for endogeneity, the coefficients of the remittance variables become insignificant. Our general findings, however, remain unchanged implying that remittances are not used for investments in human capital accumulation once education becomes voluntary. -- |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:wuewwb:124&r=cwa |