International trade in financial services

International trade in financial services is a topic of some importance both to the financial services sector itself and in international trade negotiations. Unfortunately, intrinsic problems in defining and measuring trade in services, combined with a lack of data in many countries, have made empirical analysis of trade in financial services difficult. Recent improvements in data, although still providing only a limited coverage, do now provide a basis for analysis. In this paper, we use data from the OECD International Trade in Services Statistics 2001 database to conduct an analysis of trade in financial services based on standard theories and empirical techniques for international trade. Our results suggest that the key concepts of international trade are of use in understanding international trade flows in financial services. In particular, we find evidence of significant volumes of intra-industry trade in financial services, as well as significant volumes of inter-industry trade for some countries, including the UK. Using Balassa's ‘revealed comparative advantage’ index, the most highly ranked countries are Belgium-Luxembourg, Italy, Switzerland, the UK, the USA and Greece. Using the ‘net export ratio’, the countries that are ranked highest include Germany, Switzerland, the UK, the USA and Belgium-Luxembourg.     

服务业对外直接投资的发展及其影响

全球对外直接投资的结构逐渐转向服务业,而我国服务业的发展水平与发达国家相比仍然存在相当大的差距,且缺乏国际竞争优势。本文通过研究服务业对外直接投资对东道国的资金来源、国际收支平衡等方面的影响,以及产生的就业效应、技术外溢效应、行业挤出效应和出口竞争力效应,总结了对我国服务业引资工作的若干启示。     

A Detailed Study of Financial Exclusion in the UK

The concept of financial exclusion has been the subject of increasing interest and debate and is characterised as a situation where a proportion of the population have limited access to mainstream financial services. Previous studies of financial exclusion in the UK have generally focused on a particular financial service, such as bank accounts, and have incorporated differing methods and models of investigation. Thus, comparing and contrasting significant influences on exclusion across a range of financial services proves problematic. The current study uses a common model to test and compare influences on exclusion for a wide range of financial services. Findings show that the most consistent and significant influences on financial exclusion are employment status, household income, and housing tenure, closely followed by marital status, age, and level of academic qualification. A more complex relationship with the remaining explanatory variables is apparent.     

服务业能承担转移我国农村剩余劳动力的重任吗

服务业就业比重的提高难用一个统一的理论基础来解释.发达国家服务业就业结构的变迁表明,服务业就业比重的提高实质上是以商务服务业为主的生产者服务业和以教育、医疗卫生业为主的社会服务业就业比重的提高.从目前来看,短期内我国服务业难以承担大规模转移农村剩余劳动力的任务.但通过发展劳动密集型制造业转移农村剩余劳动力不仅是可行的,也是必要的.     

Profitability and Employment in United Kingdom Financial Services 1971–1981

The article examines changes in employment and profits in the UK financial services sector between 1971 and 1981. The conclusions are that, despite the severe recession, both indicators have risen — employment by just under 30 per cent, and profits by around 15 per cent. What is even more significant is that in every single region of Great Britain there has been an increase in service employment so that there are now more people employed in services in every region than in all other categories put together. This fact, it is felt, is not fully appreciated.     

The skills balance in Germany’s import intensity of exports: An input-output analysis

In the decade prior to the economic and financial crisis, Germany’s net exports increased in absolute terms as well as relative to the growing level of import intensity of domestically produced export goods and services. This article analyses the direct and indirect employment effects induced both by exports as well as by of the import intensity of the production process of export goods and services on the skills used. It shows that Germany’s export surpluses led to positive net employment effects. Although the volume of imports of intermediate goods increased and was augmented by the rise in exports, it could not undermine the overall positive employment effect.     

Patterns of trade restrictiveness in online platforms: A first look

This paper develops a digital platform restrictiveness index for 64 countries based on ECIPE’s Digital Trade Estimates database and the Digital Trade Restrictiveness Index. We identify specific restrictions that affect online platforms with a focus on online search, e-commerce and social media. The results show that both OECD and non-OECD countries show high levels of trade restrictions on online platforms. Moreover, some of the most restricted countries are characterised by large markets, signifying that a substantial part of the global economy gravitates towards restricting online platforms. Based on the platform restrictiveness index, we perform an econometric analysis showing that trade restrictions for online platforms are significantly associated with lower contributions of the ICT sector to productivity growth in the entire economy. The results suggest that reducing restrictions on online platforms can increase the ICT’s contribution to overall productivity growth towards a level seen before the global financial crisis. Sectors that would benefit the most are those that make wider use of online platforms and the Internet, including information services, business services and financial services.     

微型金融机构可持续发展能力的国际比较

微型金融作为一种有效的扶贫方式和金融服务手段在全球范围内快速发展。然而,微型金融的实践面临的一个主要挑战是如何在“扶贫”和“可持续发展”之间维持平衡。从可持续发展的经济含义出发,建立微型金融机构可持续发展能力评价指标体系,运用层次分析法,利用2000-2012年14个国家的财务和社会绩效数据,计算各国微型金融机构可持续发展能力得分。结果显示,我国微型金融机构可持续发展能力较弱。由此,从利率市场化、资金来源多元化、金融产品的多样化等几个方面提出了提高我国微型金融机构可持续发展能力的政策建议。     

Services policy reform and manufacturing employment: Evidence from transition economies

Policy reforms targeting the services sectors are a neglected dimension of the process of structural transformation and economic development. The effects of such reforms on employment across industries as a function of their use of services as intermediate inputs are theoretically ambiguous and remain largely understudied. This paper uses sector‐level data for 24 transition economies for the 1990–2012 period to assess the impacts of services policy reforms on downstream manufacturing employment. We find a negative effect of services reforms on manufacturing sector employment. This is mostly associated with the process of transition to a market‐based economy. Controlling for transition‐specific dynamics, the data suggest a neutral effect of progress towards adopting “best practice” policies for upstream services on employment in downstream manufacturing. Furthermore, in line with the extant literature, we confirm that services policy reforms enhance productivity of downstream manufacturing industries. Finally, we find that the negative effects on downstream employment are mitigated in countries with better economic governance and human capital.     

Financial Vulnerability,Financial Literacy,and the Use of Digital Payment Technologies

The purpose of this study is to test the notion that the use of digital payment methods, such as paying with a mobile phone, increases the risk of financial vulnerability. Research from the USA indicates such a relationship, and we study whether this finding can be generalized to other countries. Motivated by recent changes in EU legislation related to financial transactions, we also examine willingness to use social media companies for money transfers along with sharing bank account information with third-party financial services. Exploiting data collected from a representative sample of the Norwegian adult population (n?=?2202), we identify differences in financial behaviour and characteristics between users and nonusers of different digital payment methods. In contrast to US studies, we find that mobile payment users were less financially vulnerable than nonusers and those women were more likely users of digital payment technologies than men. Younger generations and those with low financial literacy were more financially vulnerable than others, although we did not find this to be related to the use of mobile payment or other digital payment methods. The results show that there is a need for more research from different countries outside of the USA to obtain an understanding of the consequences of increased digitalization of financial services. In addition, as COVID-19 has shifted a vast amount of spending online and these newer payment technologies have become more available, we need to gain a better understanding of how they influence financial behaviour.

     

The Creation and Growth of Small Business Service Firms in Post-Industrial Britain

Since 1980, the United Kingdom has experienced a dramatic growth in firms and employment in information-intensive business services, such as management consultancy and market research. This article reports the results of the first substantial nation-wide investigation into the nature and causes of small professional business service firm growth in Britain, undertaken in 1991. It reveals marked differences in the characteristics, markets and competitive requirements of such firms, compared with small manufacturing firms. The demand for their services comes predominantly from large companies, and is more focussed on financial and other services and government. But small firms are also making increasing use of business services. Specialised expertise, reputation and educational and professional qualifications are essential prerequisites for the establishment of new business service firms. Their success is also being enhanced by increasing use of informal networking, collaborative partnerships, and subcontracting.     

法国邮政银行的发展及其对我国的启示

法国是世界上邮政银行业务发展最为完善的国家之一。作为我国金融体制和邮政体制改革的产物,中国邮政储蓄银行以独立的商业银行的姿态进入中国金融市场,应借鉴法国邮政银行的成熟经验,并结合自身实际进行业务发展和创新,真正成为全能的现代商业银行。     

Explaining National Differences in the Size and Industry Distribution Employment

What forces determine national differences in the size and industry distribution of employment? We stress the role of the economic policy environment as determined by business taxes, employment security laws, credit market regulations, the national pension system, wage-setting institutions and the size of the public sector. We characterize these aspects of the economic environment in Sweden prior to 1990–91 and compare them to the situation in other European countries and the United States. Our characterization and international comparisons show that Swedish policies and institutions strongly disfavored less capital-intensive firms, smaller firms, entry by new firms, and individual and family ownership of business.

We also compile evidence that these forces affect outcomes. Taking the U.S. industry distribution as a benchmark that reflects a comparatively neutral set of policies and institutions, Sweden's employment distribution in the mid-1980s is sharply tilted away from low-wage industries and industries with greater employment shares for smaller firms and establishments. Compared to other European countries, Sweden has an unusually high share of employment in large firms. Furthermore, the Swedish rate of self- employment in the 1970s and 1980s is the lowest among all OECD countries.

The institutional and policy factors emphasized by our study differ greatly across countries. This fact suggests that our approach can be fruitfully applied to other studies of national differences in industry and size structures and their evolution over time. As an example, the tax reform wave of the 1980s – which largely evened out cross-country differences in corporate taxation among OECD countries – offers some basis for projecting a movement towards greater similarity among wealthy countries in the size and industry distribution of employment.

     

经济全球化对发展中国家居民影响的实证研究

最近十几年,经济全球化的发展对发展中国家产生了很大的影响。从贸易自由化效应来看,经济全球化并没有给发展中国家带来人均收入的增长及就业率的提升,反而令其环境遭受破坏;从金融一体化效应来看,经济全球化加剧了发展中国家的贫富悬殊差距,并导致其国民经济的大幅波动。     

What Drives India's Surge in Service Exports?

India's prowess in the service sector has been recognised the world over. Sustaining services exports is important not only to sustain India's high growth rate but also to compensate for a consistent deficit in merchandise trade and to maintain stability on the external sector. In this context, we analyse the factors of India's performance in services exports over the past three decades. The results reveal that endowment factors such as human capital, improvement in physical infrastructure and financial development are key drivers for India's surge in services exports along with world demand, exchange rate and manufacturing exports. While factors such as institutions, R&D expenditure, telecommunication, foreign direct investment and financial development significantly impact the export of modern services, traditional services exports are more dependent on infrastructure development, manufacturing exports, world demand and exchange rate. India's economic reforms in the financial sector, FDI, communication so far have helped the services exports, but India needs to focus on supply‐side factors to improve the competitiveness – and thereby volume – of services exports.     

Where does ESG pay? The role of national culture in moderating the relationship between ESG performance and financial performance

This study investigates the moderating role of a country’s culture as an external contingency factor in the relationship between a firm’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance and financial performance. Using ESG performance data of 4978 firms from 48 countries for 17 years, we argue that the financial return from engaging in ESG varies depending on the countries’ cultural aspects because stakeholder evaluations and appreciations for a firm’s ESG performance differ across nations. We find that a country that espouses a culture of high individualism or masculinity tends to appreciate and reflect on this more explicitly, strengthening the relationship between a firm’s ESG performance and financial performance. Contrastingly, in a country with a culture of high power distance or uncertainty avoidance, firms’ ESG efforts are less likely to be associated with financial performance. Our findings have important implications for multinational enterprises facing various cultural environments when dealing with heterogeneous stakeholder demands across countries.     

生产性服务贸易自由化与制造业生产率提升：基于跨国数据的分析

生产性服务贸易自由化作为当前的一种主要的对外开放的形式,对国家制造业发展的影响还没有统一的理论和实证研究。文章通过构建理论模型研究生产性服务贸易自由化对制造业生产率影响假设,利用2008-2012年中的69个国家的跨国面板数据来对假设进行检验。通过理论和实证分析发现：生产性服务贸易的自由化可以促进国内制造业生产率的提升,但是提升的作用在不同的国家收入水平和生产性服务业部门间体现出差异性。从国家的收入水平差异来看,生产性服务贸易自由化对高收入国家的影响要大于低收入国家。对于不同生产性服务业部门的自由化影响来看,显著地影响制造业生产率的是金融和商务服务生产性服务业,运输和电信生产性服务业的影响较小且不显著。     

Use of Bank and Nonbank Financial Services: Financial Decision Making by Immigrants and Native Born

This study examines the joint decisions made by immigrant and native‐born families about whether or not to have a bank account and to use nonbank financial services (NBFS ). Immigrant families, especially those from Mexico or other Latin American countries, have a higher probability of using NBFS than native‐born families, regardless of their banking status. Residing in concentrated ethnic enclaves or being a US citizen, however, lowers the probability of using these services. Similarly, native‐born Black and Hispanic families are more likely to use these services than native‐born White families. Our findings support continued efforts to encourage mainstream participation among immigrant and minority native‐born families. Having access to mainstream financial services can help these families establish financial stability and economic mobility. To our knowledge, this is the first comprehensive study of immigrant families' joint decision making about using NBFS and bank account ownership.     

HRM in Thailand: a post-1997 update

This essay updates an earlier study of human resource management (HRM) practices in Thailand, focusing specifically on HRM in the post-1997 Asian financial crisis. HRM in Thailand has undergone gradual, but significant, change, with movement away from more traditional styles of HRM and management rooted in personalism and social relationships, toward more flexible employment systems in which employment opportunities are based on merit and performance rather than connections and personal characteristics. These changes are clearly more pronounced in subsidiaries of multinational corporations, particularly those based in Western countries.     

Wife's employment and family expenditures

Data from the 1980–81 Consumer Expenditure Survey were used to examine the influence of wife's employment on spending on non-durable goods and time-saving services. Multiple regression analysis indicated that, except for personal care services, expenditure levels differed between working-wife and non-working-wife families. Other independent variables, however, were more influential in determining expenditure than was wife's employment status.