Private Sector Participation in the Provision of Quality Drinking Water in Urban Areas of Ghana: What Do Households Want and Can Afford?

This study conducts a survey among households in three cities in Ghana on how water delivery should be managed. The contingent valuation method was used to estimate the willingness to pay for improved water delivery under private sector participation. Results indicate that most households will remain connected to their current water supplies if private sector is engaged to improve water delivery at higher monthly water bills. Given that the mean household monthly water bill of GH¢10.82, the results indicate that there is demand for water quality improvement, and private sector engagement is likely to provide these services. However, this policy measure marginalises the poor in terms of access to water. Therefore, private sector participation in water delivery may require a complementary programme to promote access to water.     

Impact of land tenure policy on agricultural investments in China: Evidence from a panel data study

The goal of this paper is to examine the impact of changes in China's rural land policy on agricultural investments. Dramatic changes occurred in China's rural land policies after 2000, including the extension of rural land contractual period, restriction of land reallocation among villages and villagers groups, elimination of agricultural taxes for responsibility land, and rapid development of rural land rental markets. These changes have given farmers more secure tenure on collectively controlled responsibility land and have strengthened farmers' income rights for responsibility lands, incentivizing them to increase their investments on responsibility lands. A panel data method was used to quantitatively investigate the impact of land policy changes on agricultural investment. We considered the application of organic fertilizer as an indicator for long-term agricultural investment, and compared the use of organic fertilizer between private plots and responsibility lands operated by the same household. The results showed that the difference in organic fertilizer use between private plots and responsibility land for the same household has become smaller from 2000 to 2008. Our findings suggest that recent changes in rural land policies have provided farmers incentives to increase land quality investment on their responsibility lands.     

零售企业自有品牌发展研究

零售企业开发自有品牌是零售企业发展的一个显著特征,本文对零售企业发展自有品牌获得成本、营销组合、竞争、差别优势及提升零售商的品牌价值等方面进行了研究,提出了中国零售企业发展自有品牌应以跟随型自有品牌在价格上形成优势,用高端卖场品牌型自有品牌在质量上竞争,使零售企业利润达到最大化。     

Company-led strategies in defence sector restructuring: Implications for local economic development

This paper examines defence sector restructuring as effected through the networks of Lancashire-based companies involved in defence production. Evidence of restructuring is drawn from the Lancashire Defence Survey. The data provides the starting point for discussion of the strategies of those companies contracted to supply products and services, and employees contracted to supply skills, in the military production process. Transaction cost theory is applied to these changing contractual relations and implications for local economic development organisations are drawn out.     

Exploring ‘onward-journey’ ODI strategies in China's private sector businesses

Are the internationalization strategies of China's private businesses different from those of state-owned businesses? To date, little systematic empirical research addresses this question, despite the now well-established arguments that market and institutional imperfections influence the outward foreign direct investment (ODI) of China's state sector MNEs. Why is so little known about private sector foreign direct investment? One important reason is that private companies have gone to considerable lengths to conceal their activities by using offshore holding companies in tax havens. This paper, using a sample of offshore listed companies that are privately controlled, investigates what we dub ‘onward-journeying’ – foreign direct investment undertaken via tax havens. In doing so it further explores the ODI strategies of some of China's most successful private companies.     

私人股权投资在中国的投资操作路线及其现状

海外私人股权投资机构通常运用完美闭环操作,用股权投资方式进入中国。但由于中国种种政策的限制,私人股权投资机构一般利用离岸公司进行投资,以便资金退出。本文介绍了离岸公司的特征及其离岸重组过程,最后介绍了私人股权机构利用离岸公司在中国进行投资的近况。     

Canals,rivers, and the industrial city: Manchester's industrial waterfront, 1790–18501

This article presents new data on mill location in Manchester in 1850 to show that water‐transport infrastructure played a key role in determining the intra‐urban pattern of factory development. The shift from water to steam power introduced new patterns of industrial water use, rather than the relocation of factories away from waterways. Five new public canals and 23 private canal branches activated a major expansion of Manchester's waterfront, providing the majority of the manufacturing sites that enabled the town to become the world's foremost factory centre. Without effective municipal water supplies, canals were the best available water source for steam engines.     

The beginnings of Nazi autarky policy: the ‘National Pulp Programme’ and the origin of regional staple fibre plants1

In 1934, the Nazi regime decided to expand German staple fibre capacities significantly. The planned expansion expressed by the ‘National Pulp Programme’ was not only motivated by the balance of payments crisis at this time, but also by long‐term autarky considerations. However, private companies and the Nazi regime disagreed on the size of the cellulose fibre markets and on how risks were to be shared. Therefore the Nazi regime considered the foundation of privately owned but actually state controlled new suppliers as a way of influencing the private companies to comply with its demands. However, as far as the established companies' willingness to invest was concerned, this strategy did not prove particularly successful. These companies were disposed to invest but only according to their long‐term expectations regarding the potential staple fibre market given normal conditions; that is, with no import restrictions on natural fibres. Surprisingly, not only the big, established companies but also the private shareholders of the regional plants—often comparatively small textile companies—were not forced by the state to fulfil the requirements of the Nazi regime. Therefore these results suggest that the still‐prevailing command economy thesis is not supported by the evidence.     

终极产权控制下的私利行为及其治理——基于异质控制机制的研究述评

有学者通过追溯产权控制路径研究,发现很多国家的上市公司受到终极控股股东的控制。终极控股股东通常通过金字塔股权结构、交叉持股和优先表决权的一股多票等方式实际控制着上市公司,对公司行使不对称的控制权与所有权,从而引起控制权私利行为等代理问题。文章从终极产权控制理论发展脉络出发,重点梳理和总结了双重股权结构、金字塔股权结构和交叉持股等三种异质终极产权控制机制下的控制权私利行为及其治理途径。     

关于民营企业治理结构的家族化问题

以家族为基础成长起来的我国民营企业经过多年的发展,目前已处于产权革新阶段,由产权引发的治理结构问题在成为制约民营企业持续发展壮大的关键因素。文章首先对中国民营企业治理结构的现状归纳分析;然后基于委托代理论,对民营企业治理结构家族化的原因进行分析;最后,分析民营企业治理结构家族化面临的问题,说明企业成长的内在规定性要求家族企业沿着所有权和控制权的路径变迁,并最终过渡到由支薪经理所支配的现代股份公司。     

金融民主化、公司所有权性质与融资约束

文章旨在剖析金融民主化发展水平对上市公司融资约束程度的影响,从而为金融发展对所有权性质不同的上市公司融资约束的提升作用提供证据。通过构建金融民主化发展指数,并基于2008-2012年我国大陆31个省、自治区、直辖市的金融数据及各地A股上市公司的研究样本进行了实证研究,研究发现:相对于金融民主化发展水平较低的地区,金融民主化发展水平较高的地区上市公司融资约束程度更小;随着金融民主化进程的推进,国有控股上市公司融资约束缓解程度低于民营上市公司。     

产权关系、大股东侵占与注册会计师的监督效应

本文以1999年-2003年的4736家上市公司为研究对象，研究了产权关系对注册会计师监督效应的影响，研究发现，注册会计师更可能对民营上市公司出具非标准意见，仅仅对民营上市公司控股股东的利益侵占行为发挥了监督作用。     

浅析我国私募股权投资基金发展趋势及面临风险

私募股权投资,主要是指投资于非上市股权,或上市公司非公开交易股权的一种投资方式。近年来,中国作为亚洲最有前途的私募股权投资市场,得到了众多国家大型投行的青睐。虽然私募股权投资在中国的发展有很大的机遇,但是由于政策法规不完善等因素,私募股权投资基金在我国还面临许多问题和挑战。本文简要介绍了私募股权投资基金的基本运行原理和我国私募股权投资基金的发展现状,以及在发展过程中所面临的问题,最后提出了一些解决建议。     

我国民营快递企业增值服务发展策略研究

随着经济和社会的不断进步和发展,消费者对快递服务的需求逐渐呈现多样化,传统的＂门到门＂的快递服务已经不能满足消费者对快递服务多样化的需求,发展快递增值服务是我国民营快递企业的必然选择。文章分析了我国民营快递企业发展增值服务的内外部条件及快递增值服务的发展现状,并在此基础上从融资、网络信息化建设、品牌建设、人才建设及研发投入等五方面对我国民营快递企业发展增值服务的策略进行了研究。     

我国上市公司债务结构对业绩影响的实证研究

从公开债务（即公共债务）和非公开债务（即私人债务）的角度，分别研究了上市公司的公共债务资产比例，私人债务资产比例以及资产负债率对公司业绩的影响，发现公共债务在公司治理方面起到了显著的积极作用，而私人债务却由于其对经理人的软约束，并不利于公司整体业绩的提高和长远的发展。     

营商制度环境与民营经济发展——基于营商文化“基因”的历史考察与实证

营商制度环境作为民营经济发展的重要影响因素，离不开营商文化“基因”的历史传承，明清商帮精神的历史传承和开埠通商所带来的外部冲击，是城市营商文化“基因”的重要组成部分。实证研究基于281个地市级以上城市的民营企业发展数据和世界银行的微观企业调查数据，检验了营商制度环境的历史传承及其对民营经济发展规模和质量的影响，结果表明，城市营商制度环境受到开埠通商、明清商帮等历史因素的显著影响；营商制度环境对城市的人均私营和个体企业数量、人均民营上市公司数量、人均民营新三板公司数量等指标均具有显著的正向影响，说明不同发展规模的民营企业均受到营商制度环境的显著影响。同时，营商制度环境也显著影响了各地民营企业创新能力（专利密度）、经营活力（产能利用率）等发展质量指标。增加控制变量或更换变量指标数据，实证结论都十分稳健。文章基于营商文化传承和营商制度变迁，为营商环境研究提供了历史视角，并基于历史工具变量使用IV估计为营商制度环境对民营企业发展的影响提供了更有力的实证证据。研究结论为推动新时代的营商环境改革及推动民营经济高质量发展提供了政策启示。     

Do Wages Continue Increasing at Older Ages? Evidence on the Wage Cushion in the Netherlands

In this study, we investigate the anatomy of older workers’ wages. The central question is whether the wage cushion—i.e., the difference between actual wages and collectively agreed-upon (maximum) contractual wages—contributes to the fact that wages continue increasing at older ages. We follow the wages of individual workers in twenty-two sectors of industry in the Netherlands using administrative data for the period 2006–2010. In the public sector, we find no evidence of a wage cushion. Wage scale ceilings set in collective agreements are guiding for older workers’ wages, and workers earning a contractual wage equal to a wage scale ceiling are not compensated with higher additional wages. In the private sector, we do find evidence of a wage cushion. Wage scale ceilings are less restrictive and workers earning a contractual wage exceeding the highest wage scale ceiling experience higher contractual wage growth. The private sector wage cushion enhances wage differentiation and allows for wages that continue increasing at older ages.     

Global Retail Chains and Poor Farmers: Evidence from Madagascar

Global retail companies (“supermarkets”) have an increasing influence on developing countries, through foreign investments and/or through the imposition of their private standards. The impact on developing countries and poverty is often assessed as negative. In this paper we show the opposite, based on an analysis of primary data collected to measure the impact of supermarkets on small contract farmers in Madagascar, one of the poorest countries in the world. Almost 10,000 farmers in the Highlands of Madagascar produce vegetables for supermarkets in Europe. In this global supply chain, small farmers’ micro-contracts are combined with intensive farm assistance and supervision programs to fulfill complex quality requirements and phyto-sanitary standards of supermarkets. Small farmers that participate in these contracts have higher welfare, more income stability and shorter lean periods. We also find significant effects on improved technology adoption, better resource management and spillovers on the productivity of the staple crop rice. The small but emerging modern retail sector in Madagascar does not (yet) deliver these benefits as they do not (yet) request the same high standards for their supplies.     

自然垄断产业的产权改革与规制:我国航空运输业例证

我国航空运输产业在发展中经历了产权、竞争与规制改革。产权改革与进入规制的放松是我国航空运输业改革成功的必要条件。在这一前提下,引入竞争同时放松价格规制对产业改革的成功起到至关重要的影响。此外,少数民营公司的成功运营表明私有资本能够最大化资本的利用效果。然而,多数民营航空公司的失败案例则表明价格下限规制和优质航线的不对称进入规制等制度环境是民营资本生存和发展的最大阻碍。