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on Transition Economics |
| By: | Balázs Murakozy (Institute of Economics, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, Hungarian Academy of Sciences); Almos Telegdy (National Bank of Hungary and Central European University) |
| Abstract: | Using application-level data on successful and rejected applications for the European Union’s Structural and Cohesion Funds between 2004 and 2012 in Hungary, we study which grant types are susceptible to political manipulation and how politicians achieve this goal. Using township fixed-effect estimators to attenuate the simultaneity bias between municipality characteristics and political affiliation, we find that townships with a mayor endorsed by the governing parties obtain 10 percent higher grant value per capita. This effect varies widely by grant attributes: it is of 16-19 percent when the applicant is a public entity or the project’s purpose is construction so it is visible to voters and thus may bring about electoral benefits. For private applications and non-construction grants, where electoral gains are likely to be limited, the estimated effect is zero. Decomposing the township alignment effect into grant application effects (application intensity and the average value of grant) and grant decision effects (grant success rate and proportion of grant value received) reveals that both margins play a role in the political manipulation of grant distribution. When analyzing the effect of grants on votes, we show that voters indeed reward construction and public projects. |
| Keywords: | Redistributive politics; Political alignment; European Structural Funds, Hungary |
| JEL: | D72 D78 H77 |
| Date: | 2015–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:has:discpr:1531&r=all |
| By: | Juan Carlos Cuestas (Department of Economics, University of Sheffield); Bo Tang (Department of Economics, University of Sheffield) |
| Abstract: | This study explores the asymmetric exchange rate exposure of stock returns building upon the capital asset pricing model (CAPM) framework, using monthly returns of Chinese industry indices. In accordance with the existing literature, industry returns are subject to lagged exposure effects, but the asymmetries vary across industries, which could be due to the discrepancies of trade balance and ownership of certain industries. Furthermore, the dynamic multipliers depict that industry returns quickly respond to changes in the exchange rate and correct the disequilibrium within a short time, making the long run exposure to be symmetric or very small. The remaining shocks are mainly explained by the return of market portfolios. This implies that the ongoing restrictions on the RMB daily trading band do indeed protect the Chinese stock market against the effects of currency movements. |
| Keywords: | Asymmetric exchange rate exposure, stock returns, Chinese industries, NARDL |
| JEL: | C58 F3 G15 |
| Date: | 2015–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:shf:wpaper:2015021&r=all |
| By: | Krzysztof Klincewicz (Independent Expert) |
| Abstract: | In the frame of the Stairway to Excellence project, complex country analysis was performed for the EU MS that joined the EU since 2004, with the objective to assess and corroborate all the qualitative and quantitative data in drawing national/regional FP7 participation patterns, understand the push–pull factors for FP7/H2020 participation and the factors affecting the capacity to absorb cohesion policy funds. This report articulates analysis on selected aspects and country-tailored policy suggestions aiming to tackle the weaknesses identified in the analysis. The report complements the complex qualitative/ quantitative analysis performed by the IPTS/KfG/S2E team. In order to avoid duplication and cover all the elements required for a sound analysis, the report builds on analytical framework developed by IPTS. |
| Keywords: | Research and Innovation, EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation, Horizon 2020, Cohesion policy, Structural Funds, SF, ERDF, European Regional Development Fund, European Structural & Investment Funds, ESIF, quality of governance, evaluation and monitoring mechanisms, Poland. |
| Date: | 2015–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc97221&r=all |
| By: | Vladimir Mau (RANEPA); Tatiana Klyachko (RANEPA) |
| Abstract: | This paper discusses the future of universities: trends that are increasingly drawing attention, and those who have yet to appear, without getting into the field of view of the majority of researchers in higher education. Debate on the future of the university is due to the emergence of new factors and circumstances, play a significant role in the development of higher education, especially in developed countries. Among the key questions as the proper factors of development education and global context. The former include the rapid growth of costs universities and the emergence of massive open online courses (MEP) as a possible counterweight to rise in the cost of education, as well as the emerging shift from mass to universal higher education. The second group - the course of the global crisis and the contours of the new socio-economic and technological realities that will form as a result of its settlement. After a change in the place and the role of universities and the influence of new social factors, and the change of economic model. Naturally, special attention is paid to the analysis of trends in Russian higher education. The report attempts to examine the consequences of the coming changes and possible fork in educational policy. В докладе обсуждается будущее университетов: те тенденции, на которые все больше обращается внимание, и те, которые еще только проявляются, не попав в поле зрения большинства исследователей высшего образования. Дискуссия о будущем университетов ведется в связи с появлением новых факторов и обстоятельств, играющих существенную роль в развитии высшего образования, особенно в развитых странах. Среди ключевых вопросов как собственно факторы развития образования, так и глобальный контекст. К первым относятся быстрый рост издержек университетов и появление массовых онлайновых открытых курсов (МООС) как возможного противовеса удорожанию образования, а также наметившийся переход от массового высшего образования к всеобщему. Ко вторым — ход глобального кризиса и контуры той новой социально-экономической и технологической реальностей, которые сформируются в результате его разрешения. Ведь на изменение места и роли университетов влияют и новые социальные факторы, и смена экономической модели. Естественно, что особое внимание авторы уделяют анализу российских тенденций в сфере высшего образования. В докладе предпринята попытка рассмотреть последствия грядущих перемен и возможные развилки образовательной политики.. |
| Keywords: | Russian economy, education system, higher education |
| JEL: | I21 I22 I23 I24 I25 I28 |
| Date: | 2015 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gai:wpaper:128&r=all |
| By: | Olga Izryadnova (Gaidar Institute for Economic Policy) |
| Abstract: | Научные проблемы, связанные с анализом и исследованием структурных сдвигов в российской экономике, включают качественные и количе- ственные оценки потенциала экономического роста, а также разработку и обоснование конструктивных предложений и альтернативных вариантов экономической политики. В работе представлены результаты анализа основных изменений российской экономики на основе исследования динамики и структуры внут- реннего и внешнего спроса. Использованная система показателей адекватно отражает изменения основных параметров экономической политики, характеризует механизм воздействия на показатели эффективности использования факторов производства и повышения конкурентоспособно- сти российской экономики. Работа выполнена на большом массиве статистических данных, обработанных в соответствии с целями исследования. |
| Keywords: | Russian economy, structure of the Russian economy, structural shifts |
| JEL: | G18 G28 O11 |
| Date: | 2015 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gai:wpaper:127&r=all |
| By: | Fuest, Clemens; Xing, Jing |
| Abstract: | In this study, we analyze the cyclicality of fiscal policies in China during the period 1978-2013. We find that the cyclicality of local government spending in China significantly affects the cyclicality of total government spending. By employing both time-series and province-level panel data, we show that local budgetary government spending was strongly procyclical during the 1980s, but it became counter-cyclical with respect to nationwide output fluctuations and acyclical with respect to region-specific output shocks since the mid-1990s. We argue that these are likely to be consequences of the 1994 fiscal reform, which revamped the fiscal relations between the central and local governments, reduced the procyclicality of local government budgetary revenue and brought in counter-cyclical intergovernmental transfers. Findings of this study contribute to the debate on how developing and emerging countries, in particular those with federal fiscal structures, could reduce the procyclicality of their fiscal policies. |
| Keywords: | fiscal federalism,tax reform,government spending |
| JEL: | H71 H72 H77 |
| Date: | 2015 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:zewdip:15068&r=all |
| By: | Akgüc, Mehtap (Center for European Policy Studies (CEPS)); Liu, Xingfei (Ryerson University); Tani, Massimiliano (IZA); Zimmermann, Klaus F. (IZA and University of Bonn) |
| Abstract: | To contribute to a scarce literature, in particular for developing and emerging economies, we study the nature of measured risk attitudes and their consequences for migration. We also investigate whether substantial changes in the risk environment influences risk tolerance. Using the 2009 RUMiC data for China, we find that rural-urban migrants and their family members are substantially less risk-averse than stayers. We further provide evidence that individual risk attitudes are unaffected by substantial changes in the environment and that risk tolerance is correlated across generations. |
| Keywords: | risk aversion, risk attitudes, migration, China |
| JEL: | J61 D81 |
| Date: | 2015–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp9347&r=all |
| By: | Vladimir Mau (RANEPA); Sergey Ulyukaev (RANEPA) |
| Abstract: | The global crisis creates a new economic and political agenda. It requires a rethinking of many of the conclusions of economic theory and practice, which is still considered to be accepted. The paper analyzes the key issues of economic development in the medium term. Among the important for the formation of a new model of economic growth problems are considered: the rate of growth and the likelihood of long-term stagnation, new challenges to macroeconomic policies in connection with a wide spread of its unconventional tools, inequality and economic growth, the contours of the new social state, perspectives of globalization, as well as re-industrialization in developed countries. On this basis, analyzes the nature and causes of the crisis in the Russian economy, compared crises 2008-2009 and 2014-2015 years., There are three main components of the latter. We consider the effects and impact of sanctions on the change in the economic situation in the country, the medium-term structural growth constraints. Examples of medium- and long-term measures that will help to reverse the current trends and bring the economy on the path of sustainable development. Глобальный кризис формирует новую экономико-политическую повестку. Она требует переосмысления многих выводов экономической теории и практики, которые до сих пор считались общепринятыми. В работе анализируются ключевые вопросы экономического развития на среднесрочную перспективу. В числе важных для формирования новой модели экономического роста проблемы рассматриваются: темпы роста и вероятность долгосрочной стагнации, новые вызовы макроэкономической политики в связи с широким распространением ее нетрадиционных инструментов, неравенство и экономический рост, контуры нового социального государства, перспективы глобализации, а также реиндустриализации в развитых странах. На этой основе анализируются характер и причины кризисных явлений в российской экономике, сопоставляются кризисы 2008–2009 и 2014–2015 гг., выделяются три основные компоненты последнего. Рассматриваются эффекты и влияние санкций на изменение экономической ситуации в стране, структурные среднесрочные ограничения темпов роста. Приводятся примеры средне- и долгосрочных мер, которые помогут переломить существующие тенденции и вывести экономику на траекторию устойчивого развития.. |
| Keywords: | Russian economy, global crisis, economic policy |
| JEL: | F34 |
| Date: | 2015 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gai:wpaper:126&r=all |
| By: | Dzsamila Vonnak (Institute of Economics, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, Hungarian Academy of Sciences and Central European University) |
| Abstract: | I decompose the factors contributing to the riskiness of foreign currency borrowers. I compare counterfactual default probabilities of local and foreign currency borrowers estimated on disaggregated data. My results suggest that the currency mismatch with the depreciation of the local currency is the most important factor contributing to the riskiness of foreign currency borrowers, though boom-period excessive risk taking of banks is also concentrated in foreign currency lending. |
| Keywords: | foreign currency debt, banking |
| JEL: | G21 F31 F34 |
| Date: | 2015–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:has:discpr:1528&r=all |
| By: | Ma³gorzata Skibiñska |
| Abstract: | We use a structural macroeconomic model with search and matching frictions on the labour market to analyse the di?erences in the business cycle ?uctuations of the labour wedge between two CEE countries and the Euro Area. Our results indicate that the observed higher volatility of this wedge in the CEE region re?ects mainly di?erent characteristics of stochastic disturbances rather than country-speci?c features of the labour market. We also ?nd signi?cant di?erences in the sources of labour wedge ?uctuations across the considered economies. While the labour wedge dynamics in Poland is to large extent explained by shocks originating in the labour market, most of its variations in the Czech Republic and in the Eurozone are attributable to changes in households’ preferences. Overall, our results suggest that labour market frictions in Poland are relatively more severe and generate ?uctuations that are more harmful for social welfare. |
| Keywords: | labour wedge, search and matching frictions, business cycle, CEE countries |
| JEL: | E32 J64 |
| Date: | 2015–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ibt:wpaper:wp142015&r=all |
| By: | Maria Lacko (Institute of Economics, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, Hungarian Academy of Sciences) |
| Abstract: | There is considerable variation in mortality rates of the working age populations across the “old” and the “new” EU member states, and former Soviet Union countries. The explanation for these differences is investigated by scrutinizing three different groups of factors: 1. Socio-economic factors; 2. Lifestyle factors; 3. Health care resources. The analysis is based on regression analysis of health production functions (HPF) calculated from cross-country estimations for 2011. The explanatory variables of the health production function can explain 83-93% of the cross-country differences in mortality rates. The most important contribution comes from the past economic and political system represented by the historical structure of production and the present level of development. We confirmed what other authors found that the “example of Europe shows political system can significantly affect health and mortality conditions.” Economic and lifestyle disadvantages turn out to be more harmful for men than women. The effects of health expenditure, the geographical location of the country and the relative prices of alcohol and tobacco products are similar for the two genders. The consumption of spirits and tobacco, the share of the hidden economy, and the education level are significant explanatory factors for men, but non-significant for women. |
| Keywords: | mortality rate, cross-country comparison, East-, Central and West-Europe |
| JEL: | I12 |
| Date: | 2015–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:has:discpr:1535&r=all |
| By: | Maya Grigolia; Lasha Labadze; Pavol Minarik; Alena Zemplinerova; Marek Vokoun |
| Abstract: | This report has been prepared in the framework of the project “Transfer of know-how to small and mid-size businesses” of the International Visegrad Fund (IVF) and USAID. It summarizes the conditions of the SME sector (small and medium size enterprises) in Georgia, identifies the main problems in their development and provides recommendations for further interventions based on the Czech experience, existing literature and a survey implemented among SME stakeholders.Georgia generally receives favorable evaluations of its business environment. It ranks high in indices of economic freedom and is among the top countries with respect to ease of starting and doing business. On the other hand, the SME sector suffers from several problems. The most serious obstacle to SME development seems to be in the area of finance; access to finance is difficult for SMEs and the cost of credit is high. Human capital and innovations are among the weak points of Georgian SMEs as well.The different shortcomings of the environment and markets call for different interventions. The paper is roadmap of concrete activities – it contains a set of recommendations to support SMEs development drawn on three different sources: first, the theoretical foundations of entrepreneurship policy, second, the Czech experience and know-how in the SME sector, and finally, the ideas of local experts and stakeholders generated during interviews and workshops.Activities and recommendations have been divided into “generic,” which relate to a particular determinant of business environment and have an impact across industries and sectors such as access to financing, education, developing skills training, R&D, innovation, export strategy, start-ups, and those which are “sector-specific,” such as banking, health and agriculture. Political stability, the main problem in Georgia, is beyond the scope of possible interventions. |
| Keywords: | small businesses, competition, liberalization, innovation, venture capital, business financing, skills and education |
| JEL: | D04 F23 L26 L30 M13 O25 O00 |
| Date: | 2015 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sec:cnrepo:0123&r=all |
| By: | John Knight |
| Abstract: | In China political control is centralised and economic management is decentralised. This gives rise to a serious principal-agent problem, in which the agents are often better informed than the principal. China also has a semi-marketised economy involving much state intervention. This intervention serves both a political and an economic function. It assists the Communist Party to remain in political command and generates formidable patronage resources. It also provides the policy instruments, including incentive structures for officialdom, to maintain a ‘developmental state’. The combination of economic decentralisation and semi-marketised economy creates a problem of weak accountability and a breeding ground for rent seeking and corruption. For a quarter of a century China’s leadership gave overwhelming priority to the objective of achieving rapid economic growth. This policy was viewed as providing political legitimacy and securing the best protection against social instability. It is argued that the leadership was able to solve the principal-agent problem in its pursuit of economic growth. By contrast, the solution to the principal-agent problem failed in other respects, giving rise to societal costs. Little attention was paid to the dramatic socioeconomic changes –including rising inequality and economic insecurity, environmental degradation, mass migration, rent seeking and corruption – which accompanied economic growth and posed new challenges. It is argued that these changes help to explain the failure of life satisfaction scores to rise over the two decades 1990-2010. They can also help to explain the rise in indicators of social instability over that period. It is to be hoped that the new leadership’s current anti-corruption campaign together with its declared policy intention to reduce state economic intervention and increase reliance on competitive markets will strengthen deterrence and weaken opportunities for rent seeking and corruption. The paper carries the implication that China’s economy cannot be well understood except through the lens of political economy. In China political control is centralised and economic management is decentralised. This gives rise to a serious principal-agent problem, in which the agents are often better informed than the principal. China also has a semi-marketised economy involving much state intervention. This intervention serves both a political and an economic function. It assists the Communist Party to remain in political command and generates formidable patronage resources. It also provides the policy instruments, including incentive structures for officialdom, to maintain a ‘developmental state’. The combination of economic decentralisation and semi-marketised economy creates a problem of weak accountability and a breeding ground for rent seeking and corruption. For a quarter of a century China’s leadership gave overwhelming priority to the objective of achieving rapid economic growth. This policy was viewed as providing political legitimacy and securing the best protection against social instability. It is argued that the leadership was able to solve the principal-agent problem in its pursuit of economic growth. By contrast, the solution to the principal-agent problem failed in other respects, giving rise to societal costs. Little attention was paid to the dramatic socioeconomic changes –including rising inequality and economic insecurity, environmental degradation, mass migration, rent seeking and corruption – which accompanied economic growth and posed new challenges. It is argued that these changes help to explain the failure of life satisfaction scores to rise over the two decades 1990-2010. They can also help to explain the rise in indicators of social instability over that period. It is to be hoped that the new leadership’s current anti-corruption campaign together with its declared policy intention to reduce state economic intervention and increase reliance on competitive markets will strengthen deterrence and weaken opportunities for rent seeking and corruption. The paper carries the implication that China’s economy cannot be well understood except through the lens of political economy. |
| Keywords: | Accountability, China, Developmental state, Governance, Life satisfaction, Political economy, Social instability |
| JEL: | H10 H70 O53 P16 |
| Date: | 2015–09–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oxf:wpaper:758&r=all |
| By: | Maite Alguacil (Departament of Economics, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón, Spain); Andrea Éltetó (Institute of World Economics, CERS, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest, Hungary); Valeriano Martínez–San Román (Department of Economics, University of Cantabria, Spain) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we analyze both theoretically and empirically the role of foreign technology (embodied in capital and intermediate goods imports from more advanced countries) as the main driver of technology diffusion and productivity growth in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) member countries, taking into consideration the ability of these economies to adopt new technologies domestically. Productivity spillovers may vary depending on the absorptive capacities, thus conferring some scope for policy makers in their attempt to maximize the potential benefits from foreign transactions. Based on industrial-level data, we use different panel data methodologies to estimate the links between labor productivity, imports of capital goods, and local conditions in the CEE member states for the period 1995-2009. To detect potential different patterns of technology absorption at different stages of development, we split the sample into two different country groups: more and less advanced countries. Our results suggest that capital imports are productivity enhancing in the Central and Eastern European economies, with a greater effect on less advanced countries. Our estimates also confirm the relevance of other local conditions, such as domestic capital, skill endowments, and the technology gap, in productivity gains. |
| Keywords: | Imports of capital goods; Productivity; CEE countries; Local conditions |
| JEL: | C33 F14 O4 |
| Date: | 2015 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jau:wpaper:2015/12&r=all |
| By: | Peter Havlik (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw) |
| Abstract: | Summary Russia was in the direst straits even before the Ukraine crisis erupted on a grand scale in 2014. The sanctions imposed after the annexation of Crimea have deterred investments still further and instigated capital flight. The oil price slump of late 2014 and the related collapse of the rouble have inflicted additional pain and boosted inflation. Assuming that the sanctions and oil prices remain at their current (mid-2015) levels, our baseline scenario sticks to an earlier forecast of a close to 4% drop in GDP in 2015, followed by weak recovery resulting from a gradual revival in government-sponsored investment and the sluggish launch of import substitution programmes. The latter, together with more state interventions and changing the pivot from the EU to the East, could provide a modest, yet unimpressive, stimulus to the economy. Nevertheless, the chances for a successful implementation of industrial policies aiming at the diversification of the economy are now even bleaker under the regime of sanctions than in the past, and the economic prospects are accordingly gloomy. |
| Keywords: | Russia, prices, industrial policy, foreign trade, economic integration |
| JEL: | E6 F4 O4 O5 |
| Date: | 2015–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wii:rpaper:rr:406&r=all |
| By: | Wan, Guanghua (Asian Development Bank Institute); Wang, Chen (Asian Development Bank Institute) |
| Abstract: | This paper estimates income polarization in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) from 1978 to 2010 and decomposes the estimated polarization by population subgroup. In addition, a framework is proposed to disentangle a change in polarization into a growth and a redistribution component. This framework is then used to quantify the contributions of various income sources to a rise in polarization in the PRC between 2002 and 2007. The analytical results suggest that (1) income polarization exhibited a broadly increasing trend from 1978 to 2010; (2) income polarization was large and rising among rural citizens, while low and declining among urban citizens; polarization of migrants also declined; (3) geographically, income polarization rose in east and particularly central PRC, while west PRC was most polarized with little change over time; and (4) the rise in polarization between 2002 and 2007 was mainly driven by the investment income, followed by transfers. Conversely, business income is polarization-reducing, especially in rural PRC. To a lesser extent, wage is also polarization-reducing, especially among migrants. |
| Keywords: | polarization decomposition; alienation; identification; income distribution; PRC |
| JEL: | D31 D63 D74 O53 |
| Date: | 2015–09–25 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbiwp:0538&r=all |
| By: | Tatiana A. Meshkova (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Evgenii IA. Moiseichev (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | The objective of this paper is to analyse the scope for improving empirical and methodological foundation of global value chains (GVCs) research and for making relevant political decisions, primarily through application of foresight methodology based on the latest trend to combine the approaches of global value chain and national innovation systems research. The authors choose Russia as an illustrative case of an economy in the changing geopolitical context to review major trends of global value chains’ development, specific features of Russia’s participation in them, and the necessary steps to increase the quality and efficiency of this participation. Special attention was paid to theoretical, methodological, and empirical tools of GVC research and of making relevant political decisions – which presently are far from being adequate: they need to be supplemented with the new ones to improve the forecasting potential, and practical and strategic orientation of the GVC approach. To this end, approaches which would make it possible to research interconnection between global processes and trends with regional and national innovation-based development tendencies become of crucial importance. Application of foresight methodology may significantly contribute to researching the GVC phenomenon, being a major logical step towards creating advanced policy tools to mobilise available resources and coordinate stakeholders’ actions to increase Russia’s global competitiveness. The paper presents a number of case studies which describe practical application of various foresight methodology components to analyse Russian participation in various GVCs, by the examples of specific product and service groups (fresh fruit and vegetables, car parts, mobile phones, air transport, electronic payment systems). The authors conclude that both full-scale foresight studies and specific components thereof could be applied for the purposes of GVC analysis, strategic planning and making political decisions |
| Keywords: | global value-added chains (GVCs); trade; competition; globalisation; innovation; foresight |
| JEL: | O14 O25 O31 |
| Date: | 2015 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:47sti2015&r=all |
| By: | Polterovich, Victor |
| Abstract: | Corporate programs of helping employees to purchase housing are studied. We consider the goals of corporate housing programs (CHP), suggest their classification, and discuss the problem of designing CHP. It is shown how foreign regional housing programs interact with CHP. Typical examples of foreign CHP at the level of individual firms, consortia and partnerships are given, as well as the programs used by US universities. CHP of large Russian companies are described. We suggest a methodology for designing and evaluating of complex mortgage CHP, and formulate recommendations for development of CHP in Russia. |
| Keywords: | mortgage subsidy, mortgage financing, partnership, consortium, savings and loan bank account for housing, modeling of corporate housing programs |
| JEL: | D02 D14 G21 |
| Date: | 2015–06–25 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:66981&r=all |
| By: | Jose-Miguel Albala-Bertrand (Queen Mary University of London) |
| Abstract: | The aim of this paper is to learn about some patterns of sectoral and industrial structural change of the Chinese economy over the 1995-2010 period. To such a purpose, we set up a quantitative methodology via input-output modelling, which allows us to decompose gross output into some key demand sources or contributions. It can be shown that the trajectory of the main structural patterns over the period were both not smooth and pretty unbalanced and that they generally responded to both domestic policy and international shocks. Export demand and heavy industry appeared to be the main engines of the economy, which showed massive increases in their share of output, at the expense of domestic demand, services and agriculture. Despite the high growth rates over this period, the Chinese economy seemed to be in need of rebalancing. There is however some indication towards the end of our period that the economy was starting to go that way. |
| Keywords: | China, Industrial structural change, Input-output decomposition, Trajectories over 1995-2010 |
| JEL: | L16 O4 B4 E2 |
| Date: | 2015–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:qmw:qmwecw:wp754&r=all |
| By: | Stefano Casini Benvenuti (Istituto Regionale per la Programmazione Economica della Toscana); Sonia Soldani; Cristina Corezzi (Provincia di Prato) |
| Abstract: | The present volume continues the close examination of the socio-economic conditions and main characteristics of the Chinese community now steadily living and working in the Prato district. The attention is shifted to the system of relations, mainly but not solely economic, that links the Chinese community on one side to native inhabitants and entrepreneurs, and on the other to those of the country of origin, specifically from Wenzhou (Zhejiang Province), a city where is present a well-established, export-oriented clothing industry’s cluster. In the district literature, the local and international spheres of relations – where the first is intended as trust among economic agents and the second as openness to international markets – are considered important factors of local development. The evolution of the two territorial scales at which socio-economic integration occurs is analyzed with the aim of highlighting tendencies, possible risks and opportunities, and drawing from them some useful policy indications. One question is whether the settlement of a considerable foreign community, not always well integrated with the native population, can favour the creation of those trust relationships that have always constituted a key factor of success for the Prato district. And also, which are the expectations – and consequently the role – regarding the second-generation Chinese in promoting a higher level of integration? What about economic integration, measurable through accounting matrixes, is it much higher than the social integration averagely perceived? And how does the evolution of international relations change the local economy’s perspectives, considering that in the past they concerned only the export of finished goods, whereas today they are enhanced by import flows of semi-finished and finished goods? These are the questions that this study seeks to answer, using direct investigations and analyzing socio-economic data. |
| Keywords: | Prato, industrial districts, Chinese entrepreneurs |
| JEL: | R12 L67 R23 |
| Date: | 2015 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:irp:report:542&r=all |
| By: | Šárka Zapletalová (Department of Business Economics and Management, School of Business Administration, Silesian University) |
| Abstract: | Internationalization of entrepreneurial activities is not only a matter of large enterprises. Currently, the majority of SMEs is undergoing the process of internationalization. The purpose of this paper is to compare the internationalization process of Czech large enterprises and SMEs. The companies included in the study are those that have already undertaken internationalization activities and are incorporated in the Czech Republic. The findings of the comparison show that the company size affects only the speed of internationalization of Czech companies. The choice of geographical coverage and entry mode is not affected by company size. |
| Keywords: | Internationalization process, large enterprises, small and medium-sized enterprise (SME), Czech companies, entry modes, geographical sub-regions. |
| JEL: | F23 M16 |
| Date: | 2015–09–29 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:opa:wpaper:0018&r=all |
| By: | Tomasz Galka; Agnieszka Gontarek; Piotr Kowalski |
| Abstract: | The development of the Polish corporate bonds market resulted from changes on the supply side. When the Lehman Brothers went bankrupt, Polish entrepreneurs realized that financing their companies’ operations only with the use of credit, even if contracted from different sources, might not be the best idea. Consequently, Polish business turned to debt instruments – said Piotr Kowalski, one of the keynote speakers during the mBank - CASE Seminar no. 136. In the publication, which is an extended and authorized version of presentations delivered during the abovementioned seminar, the authors discuss various aspects of the corporate debt securities market in Poland. Piotr Kowalski gives a synthetic presentation of the subject of the analysis, Agieszka Gontarek presents selected domestic regulations and factors, and Tomasz Ga³ka writes about selected consequences of excessive burdens. |
| Keywords: | corporate finance and governance, financial markets and institutions, finance, stock exchange, securities |
| JEL: | G3 G34 N2 N24 E44 F31 |
| Date: | 2015–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sec:bresem:0136&r=all |
| By: | Ingrid Majerová (Departament of Economics and Public Administration, School of Business Administration, Silesian University); Jan Nevima (Departament of Economics and Public Administration, School of Business Administration, Silesian University) |
| Abstract: | The high level of competitiveness, as the cornerstone of countries´ development, is the objective not only of the European Union member states but other countries as well. This article discusses the geographical aspects of competitiveness of the selected EU countries that form the Visegrad Group Plus - Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Austria and Slovenia, namely the macroeconomic one. This kind of competitiveness is divided to measurable (qualitative) input and output indicators and non-measurable (quantitative) indicators. Relation between measurable output indicators is analyzed in this paper, among them the degree of openness, export performance, transformational performance and relative power of specialization are ranked. These relationships have been tested through a panel regression in the years 1995-2013, when we assumed significant correlation between all variables. However, this assumption was confirmed only in the case of influence of degree of openness and transformational performance on the export performance in period effects |
| Keywords: | geographical aspects of competitiveness, determinants of competitiveness, panel regression, Visegrad Group Plus. |
| JEL: | F01 F02 O11 M21 |
| Date: | 2015–09–29 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:opa:wpaper:0017&r=all |