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on Transition Economics |
| By: | Ruedin, Didier |
| Abstract: | The objective of this research synthesis is to collect and summarize the research literature on Ukrainian refugees in Switzerland. This is done through a systematic review, mostly in the form of a narrative review and with statistical indicators that are synthesized. There is a wide range of evidence on Ukrainian refugees in Switzerland and their integration, although substantive and systematic gaps remain. The review provides a brief historical background, looks at the demographic composition of Ukrainian refugees in Switzerland, discusses economic integration, housing, education, social integration, crime and safety, health and well-being, and attitudes to Ukrainian refugees. Much less is known about cultural integration and political participation. Given the size of the population and the ongoing war in Ukraine, more research on Ukrainian refugees is warranted, particularly in the direction of successful integration in a context where return seems increasingly unlikely --- although dual-intent remains the official focus ---, and in areas beyond economic integration that affect well-being and intentions to return. |
| Keywords: | Ukraine, Switzerland, attitudes, demographics, economics, education, health, housing, integration, media, participation, refugees, literature review |
| JEL: | F22 O15 J15 J61 K37 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:esprep:343253 |
| By: | Stepan Kucera (Department of Finance and Accounting, Faculty of Business and Economics, Mendel University in Brno, Czech Republic) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the effect of improvements in road transport infrastructure on the intensity of inter-municipal work commuting in the Czech Republic over the period 2011–2021. The study uses linked census data on commuting flows between more than 79, 000 origin-destination municipality pairs, together with network-based estimates of travel times derived from OpenStreetMap. Using the Open-Source Routing Machine (OSRM), we estimate first-difference OLS models that relate changes in normalised commuting intensity to absolute changes in road travel time, while controlling for pre-existing commuting linkages between municipalities and a set of controls variables. We find that a one-minute reduction in travel time raises car-based commuting intensity by approximately 0.12 to 0.17 car commuters per 1, 000 economically active residents. This positive effect remains consistent across both intra-regional and intra-district spatial specifications. The analysis of heterogenous effects reveals a pronounced gender asymmetry. The travel time effect is negative, sizeable, and statistically significant for female commuters in all specifications, while it is statistically indistinguishable from zero for male commuters. For women, shorter travel time thus acts as a catalyst for work commuting across all model specifications. By contrast, for male commuters, the estimated effect is statistically indistinguishable from zero in the pooled national sample, while in alternative specifications the effect remains very weak. Education-stratified results indicate that the aggregate effect is driven primarily by workers with secondary education, whereas workers with either basic or tertiary education do not appear to respond to infrastructure improvements, or more specifically to reductions in commuting time. Stratification by sector of employment shows statistically significant results particularly in the primary and secondary sectors. While shorter commuting times in agriculture and manufacturing are associated with an increased intensity of work commuting, the results for the services sector are less clear-cut and vary across model specifications. Overall, the findings suggest that the labour market returns to road infrastructure investment are highly specific. Reductions in travel time increase car-based commuting, but the magnitude of the effect is modest. Both the strength and direction of the effect depend on the population group considered and on the broader economic-geographical context. Road infrastructure may therefore operate as a potential mechanism for improving labour market access among selected sociodemographic groups, while primarily reinforcing existing commuting corridors rather than generating entirely new ones. |
| Keywords: | transport infrastructure; commuting; labour mobility; spatial mismatch; gender; Czech Republic |
| JEL: | R41 R12 J61 H54 |
| Date: | 2026–08 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:men:wpaper:114_2026 |
| By: | Beata Osiewalska (University of Warsaw, Faculty of Economic Sciences, Interdisciplinary Centre for Labour Market and Family Dynamics (LabFam)); Anna Matysiak (University of Warsaw, Faculty of Economic Sciences, Interdisciplinary Centre for Labour Market and Family Dynamics (LabFam); Cracow University of Economics) |
| Abstract: | This study examines the role of working from home (WFH) in shaping fertility across Austria, France, and Poland. While WFH can enhance flexibility and facilitate work–family reconciliation, it may also blur boundaries and intensify work demands, with ambiguous implications for childbearing. Using longitudinal Labour Force Survey (2006–2023), we estimate hazard models of first and subsequent births, distinguishing women’s and men’s on-site work, occasional and usual WFH, self-employment, and non-employment, as well as their couple-level configurations. The association between WFH and fertility is strongly context-, gender-, and parity-specific. For first births, women’s WFH is positively associated with entry into parenthood in France and Austria, but negatively in Poland, particularly when combined with temporary employment. For subsequent births, women’s WFH is linked to higher birth risks in France and Austria, whereas in Poland, this pattern appears only when she works from home and he works on-site. Men’s WFH shows little association with fertility. These findings highlight that WFH operates as both a resource and a strain: supportive policies and secure employment can turn WFH into a facilitator of family formation, whereas their absence may transform it into a source of constraint and inequality. |
| Keywords: | work from home, flexible work, fertility, couples, Europe |
| JEL: | J13 J81 J16 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:war:wpaper:2026-35 |
| By: | Anna Kurowska (University of Warsaw, Faculty of Economic Sciences, Interdisciplinary Centre for Labour Market and Family Dynamics (LabFam)); Magdalena Grabowska (University of Warsaw, Faculty of Economic Sciences, Interdisciplinary Centre for Labour Market and Family Dynamics (LabFam)); Maciej Świtała (University of Warsaw, Faculty of Economic Sciences); Beata Osiewalska (University of Warsaw, Faculty of Economic Sciences, Interdisciplinary Centre for Labour Market and Family Dynamics (LabFam); Cracow University of Economics) |
| Abstract: | While studies highlight COVID-19's disruptive impact on fertility, whether pandemic-era childbearing predictors remain informative post-crisis is less clear. Using Polish Familydemic panel data from 2021–2024 (N = 1, 925, aged 18–49), we apply theory-guided machine learning to evaluate a broad set of individual, employment, partnership, and family characteristics. Because short-term fertility intentions prove most predictive of childbearing, we model both actual births and firm positive intentions using random forest. The pandemic-trained model retained strong post-pandemic predictive performance (AUC-ROC = 0.86), demonstrating that pandemic-era drivers remain informative. Childbearing and intentions shared 16 of their top 20 predictors, highlighting common relational, demographic, and work–family factors. Relationship satisfaction, work–life balance, and domestic work division were particularly prominent, whereas prolonged school and childcare closures lowered predicted probabilities for both outcomes among parents. Ultimately, post-pandemic fertility dynamics reflect persistent constraints embedded in everyday family and working lives. |
| Keywords: | childbearing, fertility intentions, COVID-19 pandemic, machine learning, relationship satisfaction, childcare closures |
| JEL: | J13 J12 J22 C53 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:war:wpaper:2026-32 |
| By: | Hanić Sućeska, Azra |
| Abstract: | Salaries of employees are one of the ethically most sensitive issues in human resource management, precisely because salaries can meet a whole spectrum of human needs. The basic ethical principles in salary distribution are fairness and equality. The application of these principles is facilitated by objective criteria. The work shows that regular salary payments are an ethical principle that is more important than the amount itself, or the distribution of salaries, relying on Adams' theory of equity, which postulates that salaries should be equivalent to the effort, knowledge, skills, and results achieved, but also fair in relation to other employees. The application of these principles of equivalence and fairness can only be ensured by clear criteria and procedures known in advance as the "rules of the game, " which determine the expectations of the employees. The aim of the research is to answer the research question of whether and to what extent the prevailing practices of determining salaries in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina can be assessed as ethical based on the application of ethical arguments, through the analysis of these practices from a business ethics perspective. The research was conducted on a sample of 325 respondents, of which 208 are from Serbia and the remaining 117 are from Bosnia and Herzegovina. A survey method was used to collect primary data. The SPSS statistical program was used to process the obtained results. Basic methods of descriptive statistical analysis, causality tests, factor analysis, and other multivariate analysis techniques were used to test the main hypothesis. The results of the research confirmed the initial assumptions that employee salaries are determined based on an established system that is known to all employees, but also that there is a low level of application of ethical principles in the distribution of salaries. |
| Keywords: | business ethics, ethical principles, salaries, HRM, management |
| JEL: | M14 M20 M54 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:esconf:343419 |
| By: | Magdalena Grabowska (University of Warsaw, Faculty of Economic Sciences, Interdisciplinary Centre for Labour Market and Family Dynamics (LabFam)) |
| Abstract: | Rising female employment and earnings have transformed partners’ economic positions, while gender divisions in unpaid labor persist. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the organization of paid and unpaid work, opening a window to reassess these two dimensions within couples. Using longitudinal panel data from Poland (2021–2024), this paper examines how relative income and the division of unpaid labor relate to both life satisfaction and partner satisfaction among partnered adults. Random-effects models reveal distinct gendered patterns. For men, these dynamics are associated primarily with global life satisfaction: men report higher life satisfaction when they out-earn their partners, but substantially lower life satisfaction when they are out-earned and primarily responsible for domestic work. For women, effects concentrate in partner satisfaction: women who out-earn their partners report lower partner satisfaction when they also perform most domestic labor. These patterns hold for both housework and childcare and are observed primarily in the post-pandemic period. |
| Keywords: | relative income, unpaid labor division, subjective well-being, intra-couple income distribution, Poland |
| JEL: | I31 J12 J16 D13 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:war:wpaper:2026-28 |
| By: | Olga Pindyuk (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw) |
| Abstract: | Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction represents one of the largest economic challenges in modern Europe, requiring financial resources that far exceed the country’s domestic capacity. This paper argues that the European Union should not view the reconstruction as a burden but rather as a strategic investment in Europe’s long-term security, competitiveness, and resilience. It assesses the scale of Ukraine’s reconstruction needs, examines lessons from previous post-conflict recovery experiences, and analyses potential benefits for the EU from providing sustained financial support to Ukraine. The paper further evaluates policy instruments needed to mobilise private capital, a key driver of long-term recovery, including enhanced de-risking mechanisms, blended finance, and public-private partnerships. The paper concludes that a successful reconstruction strategy will require sustained grant-based international support, stronger investment risk mitigation, continued institutional reforms in Ukraine, and closer integration with the EU, enabling reconstruction to generate lasting economic and strategic benefits for both Ukraine and Europe. |
| Keywords: | Ukraine, postwar reconstruction, the EU, Austria, the US; Marshall Plan, Croatia, South Korea, defence, economic security, renewable energy, critical minerals, economic integration, spillover effects, FDI, de-risking instruments, blended finance, public-private partnerships |
| JEL: | F15 F21 F34 F35 F51 F59 G20 H56 N10 N40 |
| Date: | 2026–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wii:pnotes:pn:112 |
| By: | Simon Oluoch Ochieng (Institute of Economic Studies, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines Ba a as a Czechoslovak multinational corporation during the Great Depression. It asks how a large export-oriented firm used foreign subsidiaries, related-party prices, foreign-exchange arrangements, tax accounting, and domestic employment to manage the crisis between 1929 and 1934. The paper draws on archival material from the Ba a I/9–Daòové oddìlení collection, including Ministry of Finance, tax-audit, foreign-exchange, wage, retail-tax, manager-remuneration, and whistleblower files. The evidence indicates that Ba a´s multinational structure served as a system for allocating prices, profits, currency, losses, receivables, and personnel across borders. State experts described foreign-company accounts as an accounting bridge between Zlín and foreign markets and reconstructed large alleged undeclared foreign-trade profits. The Czechoslovak state responded through audits, export-price reconstructions, questions about accounting categories, foreign-currency investigations, requests for foreign-account statements, and settlement negotiations. Ba a also maintained a substantial domestic employment, retail, and tax footprint, which helped the firm defend contested international practices as beneficial to the national economy. This paper contributes to economic history by showing how a Central European multinational used cross-border organization under Depression conditions and how the state tried to make that organization visible, taxable, and controllable. |
| Keywords: | Ba a; Czechoslovakia; Great Depression; multinational enterprise; transfer pricing; foreign exchange; tax avoidance; economic history |
| JEL: | F23 N14 N44 N84 H25 |
| Date: | 2026–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fau:wpaper:wp2026_29 |
| By: | Margit Molnar; Serdar Sengul; Christian Gréus |
| Abstract: | Bulgaria has successfully liberalised its economy and integrated into global value chains, creating jobs and raising incomes. However, businesses face long-standing challenges of low productivity. Catching up has been steady but a productivity gap with the more advanced economies remains. This paper calculates labour productivity and estimates total factor productivity based on Bulgarian micro data for 2018-23 collected by the National Statistical Institute of Bulgaria and Orbis for international comparison. Bulgarian firms in some manufacturing industries such as garments or manufacturing of machinery and equipment are less productive than other countries in the greater region, while they are more productive in some services, such as computer programming. As expected, larger and foreign firms, exporters and those located in the region around Sofia are more productive. The paper estimates markups to assess competitive pressures, and such estimates are very high in a few manufacturing industries, such as pharmaceuticals and transport equipment, and a large number of service industries such as utilities, trade of vehicles, accommodation and commerce, raising concerns about the level of competition in those markets. |
| Keywords: | competition, markups, productivity, TFP |
| JEL: | D24 D43 L11 L25 |
| Date: | 2026–09–30 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:ecoaaa:1876-en |
| By: | Nga, Le Thi Quynh; Heshmati, Almas |
| Abstract: | Labor market conditions (LMC) play an important role in business development (BD) and provincial income, yet their interaction at the provincial level in Vietnam remains underexplored. This study examines how LMC are associated with BD and Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) per capita across 63 provinces during 2018-2023, using data from the Vietnam General Statistics Office (GSO) and the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI). A simultaneous equation framework estimated by three-stage least squares (3SLS) is applied to capture the interdependence between enterprise density and GRDP per capita. The findings reveal a nonlinear and bidirectional relationship, with diminishing marginal effects at higher development levels. LMC and selected PCI dimensions are associated with enterprise activity and income differences, while regional disparities persist. The results highlight the importance of balanced regional development, improved labor allocation, and stronger institutional quality to support sustainable BD and reduce provincial gaps. |
| Keywords: | Business development, Labor market conditions, Provincial Competitiveness Index, GRDP per capita, Vietnamese provinces |
| JEL: | J21 J24 L26 R11 C33 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:glodps:1817 |
| By: | Ibadoghlu, Gubad |
| Abstract: | Azerbaijan's oil revenues are conventionally understood as a function of two variables: production volume and world oil price. This article shows that this two-factor model is no longer sufficient to explain the country's fiscal trajectory. During the first half of 2026, Azerbaijan's oil and gas revenues continued to decline even as global oil prices rose sharply amid instability in the Strait of Hormuz - a combination the standard model cannot account for. Drawing on a sixteen-year dataset (2010-H1 2026) covering national production, price, and revenue, together with field-level data for the BP-operated Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli (ACG) block and SOCAR's own operations, the article identifies two structural forces operating beneath the price-and-volume surface: a sustained decline in the capital efficiency of ACG's investment (output generated per dollar of capital and operating expenditure) and a parallel decline in the drilling productivity of SOCAR's own fields (output generated per metre drilled). Both indicators point to the same underlying phenomenon, field maturation, but through different mechanisms and with different implications for producers, regulators, and fiscal planners. The article concludes that continued reliance on price and volume alone as explanatory variables for Azerbaijan's oil revenue trajectory will systematically misstate the country's fiscal outlook, and it proposes a set of institutional and technical responses to the productivity decline documented here. |
| Keywords: | Azerbaijan, ACG, SOCAR, SOFAZ, oil production, oil revenues, oil price, well productivity, capital efficiency, opex, capex, petroleum economics, resource depletion |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:esprep:343302 |
| By: | Coville, Aidan; Osman, Adam; Piza, Caio |
| Abstract: | Expanding market access via digital technologies is seen as a key pathway for growth, yet adoption remains low among small enterprises. This paper investigates barriers to entry through two randomized experiments in the country of Georgia. The findings show that a "supply-side" training intervention failed to increase digital participation, despite high initial interest. In contrast, a "demand-side" conditional purchase order increased market access by 24 percentage points, while a payment six times larger generated only a modest additional increase. The analysis finds no complementarity between training and demand incentives. The results highlight demand-side incentives as a cost-effective policy to kickstart adoption. Although the effects largely dissipate over time as control firms catch up, firms with higher baseline readiness for e-commerce remain more likely to engage in digital markets several years later, with suggestive evidence that the demand shock accelerated adoption among this group. The paper shows that the remaining barriers to growth are likely behavioral and organizational frictions rather than simple skill or capital deficits. |
| Date: | 2026–09–21 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:11460 |
| By: | Ibrić, Muhamed; Kozarević, Emira |
| Abstract: | The European Green Deal and the Sofia Declaration on the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans emphasise sustainable natural resource management, biodiversity conservation, and the transition to a circular economy as central priorities in pursuing climate neutrality. The main objective is to improve management practices and prevent the overexploitation of natural resources while recognising the critical importance of ecosystem services. This priority is equally relevant for Bosnia and Herzegovina, considering its rich yet vulnerable natural capital, high dependence on natural resources for economic activities, and the need to align with EU environmental standards and sustainable development goals as part of its EU integration process. Across Europe, market-based policy instruments reinforcing the polluter-pays principle, such as environmental taxes, particularly resource taxes, have become increasingly favoured as tools for pollution control and natural resource management. This paper explores the relationship between resource taxes and resource productivity within the green and circular economy context, focusing on the EU member states and Bosnia and Herzegovina from 2014 to 2023. Using a panel dataset and static panel regression models - including pooled Ordinary Least Squares (OLS), Fixed Effects (FE), and Random Effects (RE) - the study examines whether fiscal instruments, especially resource taxes, are associated with improvements in resource productivity and progress toward EU environmental performance targets. The expected findings will provide empirical insights into the role of fiscal policy in supporting the green transition and identify potential pathways for Bosnia and Herzegovina to fulfil its commitments under the Sofia Declaration for the Western Balkans, the European Green Deal, and relevant national strategies. |
| Keywords: | resource taxes, environmental taxes, resource productivity, circular economy, panel regression |
| JEL: | H21 H22 H23 C23 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:esconf:343368 |
| By: | Giulia Aliprandi (International Tax Observatory); Teona Cretu (International Tax Observatory); Vytautas Valuta (International Tax Observatory) |
| Abstract: | The European Union's Public Country-by-Country Reporting (CbCR) Directive aims to make where multinationals operate and where they pay tax visible to investors, regulators, and the public. This report asks whether the Directive delivers on that objective, examining three questions: does the regime add new public information, how complete is the disclosure, and how much of multinational activity does its geographical design make visible? Using the first comprehensive dataset of public CbCR filings under the Directive — 144 multinationals from 24 headquarters countries, covering financial years 2023 and 2024, for a total of 164 reports, drawn from Romania's early transposition — three findings emerge. First, the Directive adds new public information, since most multinationals now publishing have no prior voluntary disclosure history, but coverage falls short of its theoretical scope: only 20% of the 569 non-EU multinationals estimated to be in scope have published a report. Second, 38% of reports are incomplete, most commonly limited to Romania only, driven mainly by parent non-cooperation and safeguard clause invocations. Third, the Directive's geographical design leaves a large share of multinational activity aggregated into a residual "Others" category, which absorbs 71% of profits and 74% of revenues in the Romanian data. The report recommends the Commission's review prioritise widening disclosure, addressing parent non-cooperation, and establishing a centralised repository for filings. |
| Keywords: | Public country-by-country reporting; Country-by-country reporting; Tax transparency; Corporate tax transparency; Multinational enterprises; Profit shifting; Tax avoidance; EU tax policy; Tax disclosure; Base erosion and profit shifting |
| JEL: | H25 H26 F23 K34 M41 |
| Date: | 2026–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dbp:report:011 |
| By: | Mogge, Lukas; Roeckert, Julian; Rukundo, Emmanuel Nshakira; Krähnert, Kati |
| Abstract: | We study stated and realized demand for a new parametric insurance product against excessive rainfall among rice farmers in Vietnam's Mekong Delta, a region highly exposed to climate change. Using a household survey of 3, 000 rice-farming households, we elicit willingness to pay (WTP) using a multiple-bounded dichotomous choice approach. Stated demand is substantial: 33% of respondents report a WTP of at least half the market price, and 18% report a WTP equal to or higher than the market price. Stated demand is significantly higher among men, younger respondents, and respondents reporting better self-assessed product understanding. Yet when insurance agents offered the product at a subsidized price below respondents' stated WTP, no respondent purchased it. We discuss mechanisms that may explain this discrepancy between stated and realized demand, including limited incentive compatibility of the WTP elicitation mechanism, changes in valuations, and contextual barriers to insurance adoption. |
| Abstract: | Wir untersuchen die geäußerte und die tatsächliche Nachfrage nach einem neuen parametrischen Versicherungsprodukt gegen übermäßige Niederschläge bei reisanbauenden Haushalten im vietnamesischen Mekong-Delta - einer Region, die stark vom Klimawandel betroffen ist. Auf der Grundlage einer Befragung von 3.000 reisanbauenden Haushalten ermitteln wir die Zahlungsbereitschaft mittels eines "Multiple-Bounded Dichotomous Choice"-Verfahrens. Die geäußerte Nachfrage ist substanziell: 33 % der Befragten geben eine Zahlungsbereitschaft von mindestens der Hälfte des Marktpreises an, und 18 % nennen einen Betrag, der dem Marktpreis entspricht oder darüber liegt. Die geäußerte Nachfrage ist bei männlichen Befragten, jüngeren Befragten sowie Befragten, die ihr eigenes Produktverständnis höher einschätzen, signifikant höher. Als Versicherungsvertreter das Produkt jedoch zu einem subventionierten Preis anboten, der unter der angegebenen Zahlungsbereitschaft der Befragten lag, erwarb kein einziger Teilnehmer das Versicherungsprodukt. Wir erörtern Mechanismen, die diese Diskrepanz zwischen geäußerter und tatsächlicher Nachfrage erklären könnten, darunter die eingeschränkte Anreizkompatibilität des Verfahrens zur Ermittlung der Zahlungsbereitschaft, Veränderungen der Bewertung sowie kontextuelle Hindernisse für den Abschluss der Versicherung. |
| Keywords: | Agriculture, parametric weather insurance, Vietnam, willingness-to-pay |
| JEL: | G52 Q14 Q12 O12 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:rwirep:343540 |
| By: | Bibilashvili, Mariam (Masaryk University); Bechná, Zinaida; Kakachia, Kornely |
| Abstract: | Moving beyond studies on contemporary security challenges posed by information manipulation, economic coercion, and military pressure, this article problematises the securitisation of foreign interference narratives by political leaders through the case of Georgia (2023–2025). The analysis draws on 325 social media posts by high-level officials and ten in-depth interviews with civic actors resisting state narratives. It relies on securitisation theory to (1) examine how political elites frame domestic actors as instruments of the Western interference despite the country’s constitutionally anchored pro-European orientation and overwhelming public support for EU integration, and (2) explore how counter-securitisation unfolds among civic actors. The findings reveal a structured securitising narrative grounded in sovereigntist logic, invoking historical memory, identity threats, and conspiracy framings to delegitimise civic actors as rootless and foreign aligned. However, rather than generating stable audience acceptance this securitising move triggers counter-securitisation as civic actors contest the proposed threat hierarchy, reframe Russia and democratic backsliding as primary dangers, and additionally mobilise performative resistance through street protest. The analysis highlights the agency of civic actors who simultaneously occupy the positions of securitised subjects and a segment of the audience and complements post-structuralist understandings of the securitisation as a co-constitutive and iterative rather than a linear process. |
| Date: | 2026–09–24 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:qfv52_v1 |
| By: | Sofie R. Waltl (University of Cambridge); Judita Jurasekova Kucserova (National Bank of Slovakia); Zuzana Brokesova (University of Economics and Business); Boris Frankovic (Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic); Andrej Cupak (National Bank of Slovakia) |
| Abstract: | Wealth surveys systematically under-represent affluent households because wealthy respondents are less likely to participate. We study whether targeted incentives can improve top-tail coverage in the Slovak Household Finance and Consumption Survey (HFCS). Using census data, we pre-identify affluent households and randomly assign them to treatment and control groups. Treated households are offered a limited-edition non-cash participation incentive: a proof-quality silver collector coin. The incentive increases participation by 11–14 percentage points, equivalent to a roughly 40% increase relative to the participation rate among non-incentivized wealthy households, with the largest effects occurring when combined with personal interviewer contact. The treatment disproportionately attracts financially sophisticated households, improving coverage of the upper tail of the wealth distribution without reducing response quality. Incorporating these additional households increases measured mean wealth, raises the wealth Gini coefficient by up to 6.5%, and improves alignment between survey aggregates and National Accounts. Our findings show that fieldwork design and participation incentives materially affect the measurement of wealth inequality and may contribute to cross-country differences in HFCS-based statistics. |
| JEL: | C83 C93 D31 |
| Date: | 2026–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:svk:wpaper:1145 |
| By: | Hubert Gabrisch (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw) |
| Abstract: | This article critically analyses the German proposal of ‘associate membership’ for Ukraine, considering it against the backdrop of the tension between geopolitical challenges and the Union’s capacity to act. It begins with the premise that the Union’s current economic and political weakness stems from its institutional architecture, which no longer allows it to respond adequately to geopolitical challenges. This has resulted in the Union being sidelined in international diplomacy regarding Ukraine, and poses the risk of interference by Russia, China and the US in other candidate countries. Neither an expansion of the Union in terms of territory and population, nor a blurring of the fundamental distinction between association and membership instruments can change this situation. A resolute and pragmatic policy of internal reform is the superior alternative to the German proposal; until that can be put in place, one viable option could be to upgrade existing association agreements by incorporating the countries into the European Economic Area. |
| Keywords: | European Union, Merz proposal, enlargement, association, legal basis, treaty reforms |
| JEL: | F15 K33 O52 P48 |
| Date: | 2026–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wii:pnotes:pn:111 |
| By: | Silvija Vlah Jerić (Faculty of Economics & Business, University of Zagreb); Margareta Gardijan Kedžo (Faculty of Economics & Business, University of Zagreb); Zrinka Lovretin Golubić (Faculty of Economics & Business, University of Zagreb) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines whether ridge regularization improves portfolio performance in the Croatian equity market and whether it adds value when individual portfolio weights are already capped. We compare long-only global minimum variance (GMV) and minimum conditional value-at-risk (CVaR) portfolios using CROBEX constituent returns from 2004 onward, covering 43 index revisions and six estimation and holding-window schemes. The regularization parameter is selected adaptively using information from previous holding periods. Performance is assessed against corresponding unregularized portfolios, an equally weighted portfolio, and the CROBEX index. We also examine turnover, transaction costs, and crisis performance. Under the baseline 30% maximum-weight constraint, adaptive ridge regularization does not produce a statistically significant improvement in Sharpe ratios over the corresponding unregularized portfolios. For CVaR portfolios, the weight constraint accounts for a substantial part of the observed Sharpe-ratio improvement, while the additional benefit of ridge regularization is limited and varies across specifications. Both mechanisms have only small effects on GMV performance. Although selected CVaR specifications outperform CROBEX in cumulative returns, GMV generally provides better realized downside protection. These results suggest that ridge regularization and maximum-weight constraints are partly substitutable in this small frontier market. |
| Keywords: | portfolio optimization, ridge regularization, maximum-weight constraints, conditional value-at-risk, global minimum variance, frontier markets, CROBEX |
| JEL: | G11 C61 C58 |
| Date: | 2026–09–15 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zag:wpaper:2605 |